*A 









^fttr 



1 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 1 

89 fc£ 




gUXITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



THE 



POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES, 



AND 



OTHER PAPERS. 



BY 



y 



FRANCIS WHALEY HARPER, M.A. 



FELLOW OF ST. JOHNS COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE. 




CAMBRIDGE : 

PUBLISHED BY W. P. GRANT; 

AND G. BELL, 186, FLEET STREET, LONDON. 



MDCCCXLI. 






*fcft 



CAMBRIDGE ' 
PRINTED BY METCALFE AND PALMER, TRINITY-STREET. 



TO 



THE REVEREND 



HENRY CREWE BOUTFLOWER, M.A. 



MEAL MASTER OF THE FREE GRAMMAR SCHOOL, 



BURY, LANCASHIRE, 



THIS VOLUME 



IS, BY HIS SOMETIME PUPIL, 



AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED. 



PREFACE. 



The following pages are designed for the higher 
classes of schools, and the younger part of the 
students in our Universities. My object has been 
to give learners a clear, connected, and, to a 
certain extent at least, systematick knowledge of 
the powers of the several Greek tenses, — a sub- 
ject, notwithstanding its importance, very likely, 
from certain deficiencies in the verbal forms of 
our own language, to be more or less overlooked. 
With regard to the method employed, it should 
be borne in mind that the form of delivery best 
adapted for teaching any doctrine, is not the 
same with that most convenient for the mere 
statement and preservation thereof. I cannot think 
that, with reference to this purpose of teaching, I 
shall seem either to have given too many ex- 
amples, or to have repeated too frequently the 
doctrines which they are intended to illustrate. 
No one who has been engaged in tuition, and 
but very few, I imagine, who have paid any at- 
tention to the steps of their own intellectual pro- 
gress, can be unaware of how little practical 



VI PREFACE. 

avail, for the most part, knowledge is, until it 
has grown into familiarity by varied forms of re- 
petition and renewal. The mind of man, it has 
been well observed, will not, any more than his 
body, thrive upon concentrated nutriment. 

The usage of dV is closely connected with that 
of the tenses. The other papers, though not im- 
mediately pertaining to those which precede them, 
will not, I trust, prove useless or unacceptable. 
I need hardly say that the last of these, except 
where I have endeavoured to correct what I 
conceive to be his errors, is, in substance, bor- 
rowed from Mr. Donaldson. 

The earlier papers were originally drawn up 
for a pupil, without any view to publication. 
Under these circumstances, it was natural to 
employ freely, whatever any where lay ready for 
my use. Most of the examples, however, were 
noted in my own reading, and for a considerable 
part of the doctrine, and a much greater pro- 
portion of its form and arrangement, I am not, 
consciously at least, a debtor to any one. Besides, 
as my object is to be useful, I am nowise con- 
cerned, though I should seem altogether to fail 
of being original. 



F. W. H. 



St. John's College, Cambridge. 
February \0(h, 1841. 



CONTENTS 



PAGE 



The Powers of the Greek Tenses 1 

I.-Dimculties in translation arising from the deficiency of verbal 

forms 

4 
II.— Classification of Tenses .. 

III.— Dramatick power of the Imperfects 

IV.— Comparison of Greek and English verbal forms . . . . 26 



IV.— "Ai/ in connection with the Subjunctive 

V.— The Participles of Purpose, ^9, 1**, 'cttws, etc. 

VI.— 'Av in conjunction with nrpiv and S«h 

Of Greek Accentuation.. 

A First Lesson in Psychology 



The Attick Usage of the Particle av 71 

77 
I.— "Av with the Indicative • 

88 
I \,— Av with the Optative 

HI __" 4„ with the Infinitive and Participle •• 94 

98 



108 
12S 

153 
ICG 



THE 



POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 



I. — Difficulties in translation arising from the 

DEFICIENCY OF VERBAL FORMS. 

I shall attempt to state exactly the values of the Greek 
tenses respectively, with the equivalent, or most nearly equi- 
valent verbal forms of our own tongue, with a view to the 
fuller perception of the meaning of Greek, and a nearer 
approach to accuracy in such translation therefrom as has 
for its object merely the evincing of the translator's know- 
ledge of the language. 

Were we comparing two languages, each possessed of the 
full complement of tenses, such a statement would be easy. 
Every tense of the one would have its exact correspondent 
in the other, and having ascertained these, and further 
noticed what tenses in each, from circumstances connected 
with the genius of the language, or, which is indeed nearly 
the same thing, the character of the people, were most em- 
ployed, — our task would be performed. 

But it may happen that in one of the languages under 
comparison some tense is deficient. In this case a speaker 
or writer, not finding the precise form which his intended 



2 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

meaning requires, will either, to the abandonment of its exact 
expression, make use of the tense nearest, among those at 
his command, to the one sought for, the force of this sub- 
stituted tense being frequently slightly modified by the 
connexion in which it is placed, or he will have recourse 
to a combination of the substantive verb with the parti- 
ciple — an expedient which makes much nearer approach to 
precision, though frequently not without the sacrifice of 
ease and neatness. 

Now this deficiency of verbal forms occurs in various 
languages to a greater or less extent, and takes place in 
different instances. Thus, each form of the one language 
having no longer its exact equivalent in the other, trans- 
lation begins to be difficult, and to a certain extent neces- 
sarily inaccurate, — the more so the greater is the discrepancy 
between the two languages in respect of the verbal forms 
existing in each. 

The case and the difficulty arising out of it may perhaps 
be stated thus. Let the first language (X) have belonging 
to it, tenses A, B, — , D, E, but be deficient of C ; and the 
second language (#) possess a, b 3 c, -, e, but no d. Then 
(X) will use for C sometimes B (the tense most nearly ap- 
proximating to C),and sometimes a circumlocution with the 
participle, P. In such cases the force of B and P* will be 
slightly modified by the connexion in which they are placed; 
each will have imparted to it something of the peculiar 
force of C. And this occurring frequently, B and P will 
come to have a twofold value, B and B', P and P' respec- 
tively, easily determined in each case (by familiar ears) 
from the context, the tone of the speaker's voice, and the 
like. In the same manner in (#) sometimes e and some- 

* For even P is by no means to be considered as perfectly equiva- 
lent to C. 



DIFFICULTIES IN TRANSLATION. 3 

times the circumlocution q will be used to supply the place 
of the deficient d, and so (as with B and P in X) e and 
q will acquire the modified values e' and q\ the application 
of which must be determined from the connexion. The 
case then of the translator from (X) into (x) stands thus. 
He finds the verbal forms A,B (sometimes as B, sometimes 
as B'), D, E, P (as P or V). To render these, he has in 
his own language a by which A may be always render- 
ed exactly, B will be rendered sometimes exactly by b : 
sometimes it cannot be rendered exactl) T at all, but 
may be most nearly approached by c. For D he has 
never a precise correspondent, but must express it, as 
well as his language will permit, sometimes by e, some- 
times by q. P is sometimes exactly represented by p, 
sometimes most approximately by c. Moreover, even when 
the meaning of D would be most nearly given by e, it may 
be necessary to employ q instead, for sake of representing 
the variety of the original, e having gone before, or being to 
follow frequently. 

Such are the difficulties of translating from a language 
not corresponding in its tense-forms with our own. The 
Greek and English tongues (if we take the word in its strict 
sense of an inflection of the verb) have but one tense in com- 
mon. I am disposed, however, to regard the future " I 
shall dine," and the perfects " I have dined," " I had 
dined," " I shall have dined," as properly tenses, inasmuch 
as their parts are not significant except in combination. At 
all events, it will be convenient for our present purpose so to 
consider them, seeing that (excepting the last) they have all 
precise equivalents in Greek, and it is our object, not to 
investigate the nature of the verbal forms, but to gain an 
acquaintance with their value. 



b2 



THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 



II. — Classification of Tenses. 

Exclusive of the mere copula, and for the purpose of 
these remarks, we may define a verb to be a word predicating, 
or by means of which a predication may be made. 

A verb is used intransitively when it predicates some 
action or state of its subject with reference to the subject 
alone, e.g. dXrjdevet " he is true ;" rl fy£ " what is he doing V* 
answer, rinrrei "he is striking." 

A verb is used transitively, when it predicates the action 
or state with immediate relation to some object to which the 
predication passes over, and which is, not improperly, said 
to be governed by it, e.g. aXrjdevei tclvto. " he is true in this;" 
tvtttel tov av0p(o7rov " he is striking the man."* 

Any action may be spoken of as present, past, or future. 

Also as at each of these times, either (1) going on, or (2) 
complete, or (3) its taking place only may be indicated, 
without any notice of it as going on or as complete. 

* In the words of a philosophical grammarian, " transitive verbs 
are such as suppose a separate agent and object, while the intransi- 
tive verb supposes an action terminating with the agent." — Encyclop. 
Metropol. 

A verb is usually termed transitive or intransitive in accordance 
with its prevalent usage. But, even from the examples already given, 
it is apparent that the same verb may often fall into each class alter- 
nately. Any verb commonly transitive may, on occasion, be used 
intransitively, (i. e. subjectively, with reference to the subject only,) 
and almost any verb ordinarily intransitive may, in certain cases, be 
used with reference to an object, and so become transitive. That the 
truth of this view is, at first sight, less obvious, is owing to the small 
number of verbs commonly intransitive possessed by our language, 
from the want of verbs expressive of quality, equivalent i. e. to the 
adjective with the substantive verb, e.g. in the example given above, 
we have no verb identical in meaning with a'XtjOeu'ei, and therefore 
translate " he is true." 



CLASSIFICATION OF TENSES. 5 

A tense by which an action is represented as in progres- 
sion, is called an imperfect ; and one by which it is repre- 
sented as complete, is called a perfect. 

Hence, 

(a) A tense by which an action is represented as now in 
progression, is called a present-imperfect: fanrvui M I am 
dining," the action of dining is now going on. 

(b) A tense by which an action is represented as now 
complete, is a present-perfect : hdei7rvr)Ka " I have dined," 
the action of dining is now complete. 

(c) A tense by which an action is represented as at some 
past time in progression, is a past imperfect : e.g. Zldirvow 
" I was dining," at some past time the action of dining was 
in progression. 

(d) A tense by which an action is represented as complete 
at some past time, is a past perfect, e.g. efcfenrvrjicr) " t had 
dined," e.g. when he arrived, when this or that took place ; 
at some past time, the action of dining was complete. 

(e) A tense by which an action is represented as at some 
time to come to be in progression, is a future imperfect: 
e. g. " I shall be dining;" at some future time the act of 
dining will be in progression. 

(f) A tense by which an action is represented as at some 
future time to be complete, is a future perfect ■ e. g. ccena- 
vero " I shall have dined ;" at some future time the action 
of dining will be complete. 

The perfects and imperfects have thus much in common ; 
they all suggest the notion of the time at which, or during 
which, the action is complete or in progression. For when 
we speak of an action as in progression or as complete, we 
speak of it as in progression or complete at some particular 
time, some definite period or moment. No one e. g. says 
ihiTrvovv (I was dining) without at the same time particu- 



6 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

larising some definite period at which the action of dining 
was in progression, e. g. " when he was doing this or that/' 
" when you were in court ;" or in answer to a question in 
which a particular time is mentioned or implied, e.g. " what 
were you doing when he arrived ?" "1 was dining," and 
the like. In the same manner ihhnrvijieri " I had dined " 
implies that at this or that moment the dining was over and 
complete : " when you departed I had dined," and so on. 
It will be easy to apply to the futures imperfect and perfect 
what has been said of the past tenses, and the presents ob- 
viously have reference to the definite moment now passing. 

The imperfects then and perfects agree in referring to a 
period or moment definitely fixed, the time viz. at which, or 
during which the action is spoken of as complete, or as pro- 
gressing, the sentences in which they occur answer or sug- 
gest the question " when V We may therefore classify 
them under the common name of definite tenses, — tenses t. e. 
which speak of an action as in progression or complete at 
some definitely fixed period or moment of time past, present, 
or future, which suggest the notion of the time contempo- 
raneous with the progression or completion of the action 
denoted by the verb. 

But very often we wish to speak of an action merely as 
taking place in time present, past, or future, without at all 
drawing attention to the definite period during which it is in 
progression, or the definite moment at which it is complete. 
To meet these cases tenses have been formed in Greek and 
other languages, which, from their speaking of actions with- 
out definite regard to the time when, have received the 
name of indefinites or aorists. Thus, ekteive (ekteive tov q.v- 
BpwTrov "he was killing the man") is a definite tense sug- 
gesting the notion of the time contemporaneous, during 
which the action of killing was in progression ; but ektuve 



CLASSIFICATION OF TENSES. 



{hravE tov avfyunrov " he killed the man'') is an aorist, 
merely stating the fact that in past time the killing took 
place, but without at all regarding the definite period dur- 
ing which it was in progression, or moment at which it 
was complete. 

It appears then that, for the completeness of its indicative 
mood, the verb requires nine tenses, — three imperfects, 
three perfects, and three aorists. The following table will 
show how many of these tenses are possessed by the Greek 
and English languages respectively, those which they have 
in common, and the manner in which the others are supplied ; 
and this last will afterwards be illustrated by a comparison 
of a few passages from the writers of both languages. 

'Present cinrvw, usual English substitute 
"I am dining;" sometimes, but 
rarely, " I dine." 
Past itv'nrvow t English substitute "I 
' Imperfects <{ - dining." 

Future, deficient in both languages, 

titutes, the future aoris- 

Uefimtes^ tick, or (much less frequently) 

i cro fiat cenrvuJv. 

r Present ftifcAmpm «' I have dined." 
Past iotctnrvtjKii «' I had dined." 
<! Future ccenavero M I shall have dined:" 
deficient iu the Greek active, 
but in the passive TiTvvf/o/xai 
" 1 shall have been beaten." 

I dine," deficient in Greek ; substitutes 
\ Aorists. * . W«.J.r.n. 

i 1 Past tcinrvi)<ra " I dined. 
Future cinrvncrui ** 1 shall dine." 

So far as the English tongue at least is concerned, this table 
applies only to the active voice ; for a participle of passive 
form is all that the English possesses of that voice, by the 
combination of which with the substantive verb, its occa- 
sions are, in a sort, served- 



Perfects 



Pr< 



THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 



III. — Dramatick power of the Imperfects. 

The predication conveyed by a verb is either merely 
asserted, as an abstract fact, of its subject, or we call up an 
image, or present to the mind a notion, more or less vivid, 
of the subject, and depict the predication as in actual pro- 
gress or duration before the eye of the fancy — (in progress, 
if the predication be of an action ; in duration, if it be of a 
state). The more dramatick the character of a people, 
the more they love distinct, outward, and sensuous presen- 
tation, the less their aptitude for the entertainment of thoughts 
unconnected with images — i. e. of noumena as opposed to 
phenomena — the more will they seek to make their speech 
picturesque, and not merely assertive or declaratory ; and the 
more will they feel the need of, and therefore possess also 
and employ, forms of language subservient to this purpose. 
In the verb these forms are evidently the imperfects, — the 
tenses which direct attention not merely to the fact of what 
they predicate, but also to the period contemporaneous, 
during which the thing predicated is in duration or progress. 
The imperfects therefore would be especially needed, and 
the use of them particularly affected, by a people of a cha- 
racter such as that supposed. 

Such a people were pre-eminently the old Athenians. 
And no wonder. We can never be surprised by the disco- 
very, meet us where it will, of the predominance of the 
sensuous and its influences in Attick souls. It is in loneliness 
and retirement — the solitude which unhabituates men to 
that sharp definiteness of thought which is needful for its 
expression to another, in the seasons of mist and gloom, 
which make external nature no scene for the wanton eye to 
revel in the contemplation of, in the absence of the beauti- 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 9 

fully elaborated forms of art, and amid such prospects of 
nature as engender dim and indefinite feelings in the heart, 
rather than present distinctly outlined images for the eye 
and the fancy ; — such are the scenes and circumstances in 
which men learn to affect thoughts and feelings rather than 
images, because in such the world without exercises not that 
entire tyranny which would keep the whole soul occupied, as 
it were, at its surface, but leaves it to retire within and indulge 
its own inner contemplations, allows it to view the divine and 
spiritual as they exist in themselves, as well as in their ma- 
terial and corporeal manifestations. Thus Coleridge speaks 
of " the predilections, and general tone or habit of thought 
and feeling brought by our remote ancestors with them from 
the forests of Germany, or the deep dells and rocky mountains 
of Norway;" and we find SchlegeJ dwelling on u the stern 
nature of the north which drives man back within himself." 
With the Athenians all this was different. With the pure 
air and clear sky of Attica ever around them — 

atl cid Xafxirpordruv 
fiaivovTEQ dppCJQ aidepog, 

there was in their climate nothing of that inclemency, which, 
by sending men to the seclusion of their houses, in a greater 
or less degree enforces solitude, nor anything to induce the 
melancholy and gloom of spirit which seeks and in a sort 
enjoys it. They passed their lives, one might almost say, 
in the open air, and, as a natural consequence, in society. 
Be it remembered too where it was, amid what surround- 
ing scenes and objects, that life was thus passed. 

Let me be pardoned, if at this place I seem — and it will be 
but in seeming — to digress for a few moments from the proper 
subject, for the purpose of considering a little more fully how 
the dweller in a city such as Athens must have been habi- 
tuated to the association of almost all his thoughts and feel- 



10 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

ings with the impressions produced by external objects upon 
the senses. 

We will accompany Pausanias on his way from the Piraeus 
to the Upper City ; and, entering with him at the Dipylum, 
let us note, as we pass slowly onward, the features of the 
scene which is opening upon our view. No sooner are we 
within the gate than there is the Pompaeum,* to remind 
us of all those grand spectacles and long processions by 
which the Attick people so much delighted to manifest at 
once their piety and their magnificence. Near-hand, as we 
turn from this, occurs the first of the many forms by which 
at Athens, power and mystery and sanctity were made 
objects for the bodily eye — irXriaiov vaog egti Aij/jrjTpog, dydX- 
fiara Is. avrrj te iced -q ttcuq, ical ()q,()a eywv "laK^og. Not far from 
these — tov vaov ov 7c6ppu) YloffeidoHv euTiv e(f i7nrov dopv dtyulg eVi 
yiyavTCL UoXvfiaJTrjv. All the way from the gate to the Cera- 
meicus, range on each side porticoes ; and as before provision 
was made by means of the sensible for our piety and our 
reverence, so here we find the like for the kindling of our 
energies, and the ennobling of our aims : aroal de elaiv and 

T&V 7TvX(s)V EQ TOP Kepa^LElKOV, KCtl ELKOVEQ TTpO CtVTWV %Cl\»CCU KOI 

yvvatKiov kol dvZpwv, oaoig ti virrjp^Ev <av Tig Xoyog ig hoiav. 
Who would not, many and many a time, as he looked at them, 
have felt in his own soul the stirrings of a hope, that of his 
deeds, too, there might one day be Tig Xoyog ig dofav ? Nor 
were those stirrings vain even in the multitude for whom 
untoward chances, or the weak heart, rendered them prac- 
tically inefficient. He who gained from them nothing else, 
did yet gain this, that he learned to reverence, and, in his 
humble degree, to sympathise with the lofty aims and 



* 'E(Tz\d6vTU)V Si SS Ttjv TToklV o'tKoSofXfJjULa £§ Trapa(TKS.V)]V ZCTTl TWV TTOfl- 

ttu>v, as Trlfxirovtri tol<s fitv dvd irav IVos tos di kciI \povov SiaXsiirovTas. — 
Pausanias, Attih. n. 4. 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 11 

heroick actions of a higher order of men. And it is no small 
thing, that he whose fate or fault has made him low, should 
yet be taught to lift up his eyes, and see and acknowledge 
that there is a High, and that it is above him. 

It is not necessary that I should go on, one by one, to tell 
of every thing, here in the Agora, which is worthy to be told 
of. I have at present to do, not so much with individual 
objects as with the whole which they constitute, and with 
that which results from it. Temples, and altars ; statues, 
and paintings, and porticoes ; memorials which speak to 
piety or to patriotism are everywhere around us. Everywhere 
is found the same abounding provision for exciting our feel- 
ings, and gratifying our capacities of enjoyment, by means of 
impressions upon our senses. A fane and temenos of Dio- 
nysus Melpomenos ; a banquet at which gods are the enter- 
tained, and Attica's ancient king, the primaeval Amphic- 
tyon, the entertainer; an image of the youth of whose ex- 
ceeding loveliness Day herself was enamoured, (pepovaa 'llfiepa 
Ke<pa\ov ov koWiotov yivofjievov <f>affii> vno llfxepag ipaadeiarjc 
dp7raodrjycu. Conon the restorer of Athens, Timotheus 
Conon's son, and Evagoras, king of Cyprus, honoured thus 
for his filial affection towards the country of his forefathers ; 
Theseus the revered author of Athenian liberty, and Demo- 
cratia herself personified; a picture testifying of the aid 
given by Athens to her Spartan rivals at Mantinea ; the 
temples of Apollo Patrous, and of the mother of the gods, 

(owcofiriTai ci kcu fii]Tp6g deuiv upuv ijv &eiciag elpyaaaTO ; — 

these are a few of the objects of various interest, amidst 
whose numbers we are moving in our progress towards the 
Acropolis. 

And the Acropolis itself— the mighty presence which has 
all the while been making itself felt, even when our atten- 
tion was most engaged by what lay nearer hand— that great 



]2 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

altar, as it has been called, dedicate to the Attick gods,— try- 
in some sort to see it before you as it was of old, as it was 
presented to the imaginations and hearts of those Athenian 
men before whom was spoken in their temple-theatre the 

dyoiyvvfxevojp \po(pog rjdrj riov Upowv\aiu)v . 

'AXX' o'XoXvijare tyaivojiivaKJi ruig dp^aiaunv 'Adrjvatg 
Kcu dav/JtaffTcuQ kcu TrokyvfivoiQ, iV 6 kXewoq Afjfioc, ivoacei. 

Think of its temples and statues, of the materials of which 
they were composed — the pure white marble of Pentelicus 
the least rare and costly among them — of the infinite excel- 
lence of their forms and proportions, the marvellous sculp- 
tures of their pediments and friezes, the delicately worked 
maeanders and honeysuckle ornaments which wound beneath 
their cornices, " the profusion of vivid colours which threw 
around a joyful and festive beauty, admirably harmonizing 
with the brightness and transparency of the encircling at- 
mosphere," and add to all this the severer grace which 
waits upon sanctity. Thus endeavouring to reproduce for 
yourself these elements one by one, and to combine them all 
into the life of their union, seek to realise for your own feel- 
ings what the Acropolis was — what Athens was. But to do 
this in any adequate degree is impossible. The imagina- 
tion is overpowered, 

*' The very spirit fails" 

in the attempt to conceive the beauty present there — present 
above all to the apprehensive and susceptible Athenian, to 
whom all around him was native to his own soil, akin to his 
own genius. If it be a sound philosophy which holds that 
from all beautiful objects are effluences perpetually proceed- 
ing, and that in the action of these upon the sense it is 
that our perception of the beautiful has its origin, — what a 
cloud and mist, as it were, of unspeakable beauty, effluxes 
so close and multitudinous as to be almost palpable, must 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 13 

evermore have been ascending and diffusing themselves from 
this Athenian Acropolis. How must they have clung 
around it, as it were, a charmed atmosphere, trancing the 
souls and senses of all who came within its influence. Can 
we wonder then to find that they whose genius devised such 
works, and who had them, and those many other objects of 
kindred excellence, daily before their eyes, — can we, I say, 
wonder to find that these men, habituated to the perception 
of so much beauty in the sensible, and the receiving of so 
many feelings through it as a medium ; who, in the words 
of Coleridge, " idolized the finite, and therefore were the 
masters of all grace, elegance, proportion, fancy, dignity, 
majesty — of whatever, in short, is capable of being definitely 
conveyed by defined forms or thoughts ;" who were, as the 
same great master tells us, "remarkable for complacency 
and completion, and delighted in whatever pleased the eye ;" 
to whom " it was not enough to have merely the idea of a divi- 
nity, they must have it placed before them, shaped in the most 
perfect symmetry, and presented with the nicest judgment ;" 
— is it strange that we should find in the forms of their lan- 
guage also, a preference of sensuous images over abstract 
thoughts, of picturesque description over bare declaratory 
assertion ? As a further cause which would operate to draw 
the attention of an Athenian almost exclusively to the out- 
ward and sensuous, I might add the continual restlessness 
and turbulence of new plans, with bustle and struggle to 
effect the execution of the same, which kept that sanguine, 
enterprising, onward-looking people in so frequent motion 
and excitement, and the tendency of all of which was, of 
course, to fix the attention on the outward, with its pomp 
and magnificence.* But it is time to return to our more 

* Lest what has been said of the external beauty amidst which the 
life of an Athenian was passed appear to any exaggerated, I add, from 



14 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES, 

immediate subject. For a few lines more, however, and this 
time for a real digression, I must still crave indulgence. 

I may not improbably have some young reader, who is 
conscious to himself that the language of ardent and enthu- 
siastick admiration, which he so often finds applied to Greece 
and Grecian art and literature, is to his own mind and feel- 
ings of small meaning, touches upon what is to him at best 
matter of faith rather than of knowledge ; one to whom in 

the works of the English traveller, Dr. Clarke, the following passage, 
referring, be it observed, not to Athens and its Acropolis, but to what 
Dr. C. Wordsworth has called "the Propylaea of the land of Attica." 
" We passed Macronisi, once called Helena, because Helen is said 
to have landed here after her expulsion from Troy ; and we had 
such glorious prospect of this island, and of the temple of Minerva 
Sanias standing upon the Cape, together with other more distant 
objects, that we could recollect nothing like it : such a contrast of 
colours, such an association of the wonders of nature and of art ; 
such perfection of grand and beautiful perspective, as no expression 
of perceptible properties can convey to the minds of those who have 
not beheld the objects themselves. Being well aware of the transi- 
tory nature of impressions made upon the memory by sights of this 
kind, the author wrote a description of this scene while it was actually 
before his eyes : but how poor is the effect produced by detailing 
the parts of a view in a narrative, which ought to strike as a whole 
upon the sense ! He may tell, indeed, of the dark blue sea streaked 
with hues of deepest purple — of embrowning shadows — of lights efful- 
gent as the sun — of marble pillars beaming a radiant brightness upon 
lofty precipices whose sides are diversified by refreshing verdure and 
by hoary mosses, and by gloomy and naked rocks ; or by brighter 
surfaces reflecting the most vivid and varied tints — orange, red, and 
grey; to these he may add an account of distant summits, more in. 
tensely azured than the clear and cloudless sky — of islands dimly seen 
through silvery mists upon the wide expanse of water shining, towards 
the horizon, as it were ' a sea of glass ;' — and when he has exhausted 
his vocabulary of every colour and shape exhibited by the face of 
nature or by the works of art, although he have not deviated from the 
truth in any part of his description, how little and how ineffectual has 
been the result of his undertaking."— Travels, vol. v. p. 177. 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 15 

honest truth his Greek studies have hitherto, save in few 
and unconnected particulars, been gone through as mere 
task- work, without either the expectation or the experience 
of enjoyment. Let me then be permitted earnestly to advise 
him that he forthwith procure and peruse the 'Arnica of 
Pausanias. The translation of a part of it given in Colonel 
Leake's work may, if need be, aid his progress through the 
Greek, but should on no account be made a substitute for it. 
He will of course make use of such maps, plans, and engrav- 
ings as may be at his command ; and especially let him not 
fail to have Col. Leake's book mentioned above, and Dr. 
C. Wordsworth's two works on the same subject. Let him 
so read these as if they described still existing objects, and 
he were preparing himself to act as guide (mystagogue is 
the Greek word, and it has a better sound) to the land of 
Attica and the city of Athens. And let him for a while 
make the task his epyov, his principal business. I ask of him 
no great thing— a fortnight it may be, or perhaps three weeks 
of his life, for an employment pleasant in itself, and which 
will, I am persuaded, be a step more likely than any other 
to conduct him to such an enlering-into of Athenian charac- 
ter, and such an appreciation and enjoyment of the works of 
Athenian literature and art, and in this, be it remembered, 
such a sympathy with the most refined and cultivated of all 
ages, as his own mental contexture and constitution render 
him capable of. True it is, I can give him only assurance 
of my own confident belief to induce him to act upon my 
advice ; and if he be inclined to demur to the authority, I 
have nothing to add but a repetition of the assurance. Yet 
let me again remind him that the effort risked, even should 
it prove to have been thrown away, is no great one ; while 
the good achieved, if it be successful, is inestimable, mi 

kivSvvojv ovtol ff7rav iututol ol ay iXaxiara tV tov ff<pa\rjvat 



16 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

fiXaTTTOVTeg, nXe'tara Sid to tvrv)(fjffai w^eXwai. And now at 

length to return. 

The imperfects, I was saying, would be especially needed 
and employed by a people like that of Athens. It is im- 
possible to read any narrative of an Attick writer, without 
perceiving how much is gained, both in vividness and varie- 
ty, by the frequent use of imperfects, and their interchange 
with aorists.* 

In our own language the want of imperfects is supplied 
(so far as it is supplied at all) partly by the circumlocution 
with participles and auxiliaries, partly from the modification 
which the most nearly approximating forms receive from the 
connexion in which they are placed. 

I shall now endeavour to illustrate what has been said, by 
a comparison of certain passages from the Greek, translated 
as closely as the forms of our language will permit, with 
others of a similar character taken from our own writers. 

The account of the attempted escape of Iphigeneia with 
Orestes and Pylades is thus given. (Iph. T. v. 1296.)f 

'E7T€t 7TpOQ aKTCLQ tfXdojJLEV daXaffffiaQ 

ov\ vavQ 'Opiffrov Kpvfioc r,v (JpfiifffJievr], 
rjfiac; fjLEVf ovg av defffid avfi7re/j,7r€tg IjLvhiv 
t-xpyraQ, e'teveva d7roarrjvaL Trpoao) 

* For however great the utility of imperfects, their employment 
can never make aorists (the tenses i.e. which state what occurs with- 
out drawing attention to the time during which it occurs, and in 
description describe it as momentary) unnecessary. To notice the 
time during which, must often be altogether foreign to the writer's' 
purpose — e.g. "Cyrus subjugated Lydia," not "was subjugating/ 
is the proper answer to the question, " Who subjugated Lydia?" — 
Moreover, though all things must take place in time, yet often, either 
from the shortness of this time, or from the manner in which they are 
considered, they make upon us not a continuous but a momentary 
and single impression, and therefore require the aorist as the only 
proper form by which the account of them can be conveyed. 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 17 

'AyafjLEfivovog -rralg, <og diroppr]TOv <f>Xoya 1300 

Qvaovaa ra< Kadapfxov, bv \iETu>yETO. 
uvrrj c o-itrde ceap e\ovaa roiv £,ivoiv 

E(TTEL^E X 6 ? 07 - ^ a * T< *^ *I V fiKOTTTa fJLEV, 

Tjpeaice fxiv-oi aoiat TrpomroXoig, cli'Ul,. 

Xpova) £' tw iifuv £p<£ v Tl ^V SoKoi ttXeoi', 

aVw\d\v£e Kal Karrjce fidpfiapa 

fieXr] fiayeuov<T, ujg tyovov vi£ovaa crj. 

exec Ee Bapov rjfjLEy rjfXEVOL xpovov, 

eltrijXdEit riiJiiv /W XvQevteq ol £,evol 

KTavouv avrr)v cpaTrirai t ol\oiaro. 1310 

<j>6fi<i> c a firj ypiiv Eiaopav KadrjfiEda 

o-iy/7, teXoq Ce ttcloiv tjv dvrog Xoyog, 

GTEiyEiv 'iv r/aav, KaiiTEp ovk iiofjiyotg. 

K<xi'Tav& opuifiEV ILXXacog VEuig CKacpog, 

ravrag te ttevtiikovt eVt ffKaXfAwv 7r\a'rac 

E^oi'Tag, ek cW/iiuiv te vovg veaviag, 

EXEvdipovg TrpvfiyrjdEV EOtuiTag vEiog. 

KOVTo'tg CE TtpypCLV ll\OV, ol EirU)TtClt)V 

ciytcvpav i^/ayrfwror, ol Ie kX/jmucoc 

o-rrEvhoyTEg, i]yov act \Epwv 7r^u^»'//ffta, 1320 

irovTtp %e SoyrEg ro'ig liyoig KaQ'iEaav. 

i)fjiE7g o' a^cici'/ffavrcc, wg EiffEtcofjiEv 

SoXia TE\yrjfiad\ et^o/uecOa rrjg £,ivi)g 

irpvfxyr)aiioy te, kqi cY Ev0vvT7]piag 

oiaKug E^rjpovfiEr Evirpv^xvov VEuig. 

Xoyoi o i\ojpovy, tLvl Xoyii) nopOfiEVETE 

KXiiTToyTEg ek yfjg £oava kqi 6vi]7ruXovg ; 

riiog Tig we <tv rifVcT aVe^i7roXcic \Qov6g ; 

6 c E r nr\ 'OpEffTtiQ, TTJac ofxaifxog, wc uddgg, 

1 ' AyapLEfivovog iraig Trjvh' ifxijv *:o/xt£o/ucu 1330 

Xajjojy ad£X(fj7jy t r^v dirtttXEO ek copv. 

a\V ovZev r\(jaov tl\6fxEada Ti}g £,Evr)g t 

Kal irpog <j Erreadai hEfiia£6fiE<rdd viv' 

o6ev ra CEivd TrXtjy paT y\v yEi'Eidcwv. 

keIvoi te yap ailr)pov ovk e1\ov \Epo~iv 

Vfxtlg te' TTvyfiai 3' r\aav iyKpOTOvfJEyat, 



18 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

teal <vwX' aV dfjKJxnv toiv veaviatv cijia 

eiq TrXevpd Kal wpog rJ7rap rfKOvri^Ero, 

cog rep ^vvaTTTEiv Kal avvaTtOKafxeiv jheXi], 

detvolg de ay\\xdvTpoiaiv itrcppayiLTfievoi 1540 

etpevyo/Jiev Ttpog KprjjJivov, o'l fiiv ev icdpq 

KadaifjL E\ovTEg rpavfiad', o\ & lv ofj^iatriv' 

'6)(doig h' eVtoraOeVrec EvXaflEaripojg 

i fjiapvdfiEada Kal Trirpovg E^dWofiEV* 

d\X Eipyov rjfJiag toZ,6tcii Tpvfj.vr)g em 

crradivTEg loig, war dvaoTElXai irpotno.* 

When to the beach we came of the sea 

Where the ship of Orestes in concealment had been moored, 

For us, whom thou art sending with her with bonds for the 

strangers, 
To stand off farther beckoned 

Agamemnon's daughter, under pretence of being about 
A flame forbidden \_i. e. to witness] to offer, and sacrifice of 

purification for which she went away. 
And by herself behind with [the] bonds of the two strangers 

in her hands, 
She was going — and these things were suspicious, 
Nevertheless they were contenting thy ministers, O king. 
And in a while, in order that to us to be making some progress 

forsooth she might be seeming, 

* I have been advised to omit the translation following, as tend- 
ing, by the contrast of its heavy movement with the spirited Eng- 
lish passages which follow, rather to hinder than to augment the 
learner's sense of the value of imperfects. But if this effect be pro- 
duced upon any one, let him consider that the heaviness by which 
he. is offended lies, not in the Greek imperfects, but in the English 
forms (which indeed are not imperfect tenses at all) adopted as the 
nearest representatives of them. It is the very defect in our lan- 
guage to which I desire to draw his attention, that its verb has no 
imperfects, while the substitutes for them are so heavy and awkward, 
as in many cases to be practically unavailable. Besides, as the pas- 
sage is a difficult one, I was willing to give the learner some assist- 
ance through it, in hope of the more after-industry from him in re- 
quital thereof. 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 19 

She raised a cry aloud, and was singing barbarian songs, 

Playing the magician, as though forsooth washing away murder. 

But when we had been seated for a long time, 

It occurred to us might not the strangers be loose 

And kill her, and be gone away fugitives. 

But, from fear to be looking upon what we ought not, we sit 

In silence, and at last to all was the same conclusion, 

To be going where they were, although under a prohibition. 

And there we are seeing a Grecian ship's hull 

And fifty sailors with oars on pegs, 

And from bonds the young men 

Free, standing a-stern of the ship. 

[And some] with poles were keeping the prow, and others to 

the epotides 
Were fastening up the anchor, and others, making haste with 

[i.e. forwarding the making of] 
Ladders, were drawing through their hands cabks. 
And having given them to the sea were letting them down for 

the two strangers. 
And we spared not, but, when we looked upon 
The crafty artifices, we were taking hold of the stranger maiden, 
And the cables, and through the steerage 
The rudders we were pulling out of the well-sterned ship. 
And words were passing — " On what ground are ye stealing, 
And transporting from the land images and sacrifice 
Who and whose son art thou that art carrying away [as for 

traffick] this maiden from the land ?" 
And he said — " Orestes, this maiden's brother, that 
Thou mayest learn, Agamemnon's son, in her 
I took and am conveying away with me my sister, whom I lost 

from my house." 
But nothing less were we holding of the stranger maiden, 
And to thee to be following we were forcing her. 
Whence were the dreadful blows of cheeks, 
For neither were they having steel in their hands, 
Nor we, but fists Mere being sounded, 
And feet from both the young men at once 
Into our sides and to our liver were being darted. 

c 2 



20 TITE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

And marked with terrible impressions 

We were fleeing to a cliff, some of us on the head 

Having bloody wounds, and others on the eyes ; 

And on the heights when we were stationed, more cautiously 

We were fighting and throwing stones, 

But bowmen stationed towards the stern were checking us 

With arrows so as to repulse us farther. 

It is abundantly apparent from this passage what I mean 
by saying that the Athenian narrative depicts rather than 
merely declares. In almost all the instances of the oc- 
currence of an imperfect, an English writer would probably 
have employed an aorist, in order to avoid the awkward 
heaviness of the circumlocution, by which we make our 
nearest approach to the expression of an imperfect. In 
v. 1303, an Englishman would have said simply, "she 
went by herself." The Greek e<rreix c > without any of the 
heaviness of f< she was going," not only declares the fact, 
but portrays it, places it before the eye of the hearer's 
fancy. So in the next line, rjpeffice expresses not merely the 
fact of the content on the part of the TrpoWoXoi, (Jipeas. would 
have sufficed for this purpose,) but also that it was their 
continuous state. The notice of the reader is called to the 
time during which this state was enduring. And so Ipav, 
where in English also we should probably have had il to be 
doing," and (Wot, which, referring to the same time and 
duration with Ipqv, is naturally also of the same imperfect 
form, though the awkwardness of our own language's nearest 
equivalent, " that she might be seeming," would assuredly 
lead us to substitute the aoristick, " that she might seem." 

In v. 1306, we have aVwXd\v& the aorist, followed by the 
imperfect rar^t, i. e. " she uttered a cry aloud, and was 
then for some time singing;" the cry being momentary, and 
making upon the hearers but a single impression, the 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 21 

aorist is naturally used : but in speaking of the singing, 
mental reference is made to the time during which it was 
heard to continue, and the imperfect is employed accord- 
ingly. In an examination paper it would be best to trans- 
late, " she cried aloud and then began to sing" but the 
simple aorist " she sang," would probably have been pre- 
ferred by an English writer. In v. 1309, eiffrjXdev might, 
had the speaker chosen, have been datjpxrro, but the mean- 
ing would then have been " it was occurring to us — it began 
to occur to us" — a continuity of time during which the 
thought was present to the speaker's mind. kto.volev " lest 
they might kill her;" an imperfect would have conveyed the 
notion " lest they might be killing her, be for killing her, 
be going about to kill her." On the other hand, in 
ol\oiaro (from o'tx^flai " to be gone"), we have an imperfect 
because a fear is to be expressed lest " they should kill 
her and be gone." The action of killing is considered as 
momentary, but the state of being gone as continuous and 
lasting. In v. 1311, it lay in the speaker's choice to have 
said £i<Tice~iv, but he preferred the more vivid and dramatick 
expression, which has none of the heaviness of our "to be 
looking on." So again, (rrei\eLv is " to be going," and 
opu^ey, as well by its imperfect force as by its recurrence 
to the present tense, places the actual scene and goings on 
before the eye of the hearer's fancy. Similarly tlx ov " t nev 
were holding," and ifavrj-n-Tov " they were fastening from," 
(or, as we should say, "fastening to,") jyo* "they were 
drawing," and tcadUrav, " they were letting down." On the 
contrary, when the alacrity of the king's Trpocnrokoi is to be 
indicated, we have the aorist tos elffeico^ev "as soon as we 
beheld," not " were beholding," as though they had been 
some time gazing before beginning to act. The going on 
of the whole is again presented by eixo^eada^ and itypovfiev 



99 



THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 



" we were pulling out/' or " we began to pull out." So 
with regard to ex^juev, nopd revets, aV£jU7roX^) and there will 
be no difficulty in explaining after the same manner the 
interchange of imperfects and aorists in eItte, fiddyg, Kopi£opcn, 
aVw'Xfo-a, eVeerfiat, £i£/3ta£o'/x£o0a. It is obvious how much 

the Greek gains in power of portraying, as well as in 
variety, by the possession of imperfects as well as aorists; 
and it will be the more apparent by comparing with the 
above passage of Euripides, the following very animated 
description from " Philip Van Artevelde." 

" Beside Nivelle the Earl and Launoy met. 

Six thousand voices shouted with the last, 

' Ghent the good Town ! Ghent and the Chaperons Blancs !' 

But from that force thrice-told there came the cry 

Of * Flanders, with the Lion of the Bastard !' 

So then the battle joined, and they of Ghent 

Gave back and opened after three hours' fight ; 

And hardly flying had they gained Nivelle, 

When the Earl's vanguard came upon their rear 

Ere they could close the gate, and entered with them. 

Then all were slain save Launoy and his guard, 

Who, barricaded in the minster tower, 

Made desperate resistance, whereupon 

The Earl waxed wrothful and bade fire the church. 

First Burgher. — Say 'st thou? Ohsacrilege accursed! Was't done? 

Second Dean. — 'Twas done — and presently was heard a yel), 

And after that the rushing of the flames ! 

Then Launoy, from the steeple cried aloud 

1 A ransom !' and held up his coat to sight 

With florins filled, but they without but laugh'd 

And mock'd him, saying, ' Come amongst us, John, 

And we will give thee welcome ; — make a leap — 

Come out at window, John.' — With that the flames 

Rose up and reached him, and he drew his sword, 

Cast his rich coat behind him in the fire, 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 23 

And shouting < Ghent ye slaves !' leapt freely forth, 
When they below received him on their spears. 
And so died John of Launoy." 

This is a sufficiently animated description ; yet one cannot 
read it in close succession to the passage from Euripides, 
without perceiving how great is the advantage arising from 
the possession of imperfects. There is not, in the English 
extract, a single instance of the expression with the parti- 
ciple which is most nearly an equivalent to the Greek imper- 
fect. Nor is this perhaps to be regretted, for its introduc- 
tion would probably do more injury to the lines by retard- 
ing their movement, than benefit in any other way. There 
occur in the entire passage more than twenty aorists. Had 
the fate of John of Launoy been related by a Greek, in his 
own language, it is probable that more than two-thirds of 
these would have been exchanged for imperfects. 

For further illustration, take /Eschylus' description of the 
battle of Salamis: — 

Hpley fjiey, (I) teairowa, rov wavrOQ kcikou 

(pavtiq dXdarwp, if tcatcog caifxojy iroder. 

avijp yap "EAXtjj', el ' 'AOqvaiujy arparou 

eXdwy, eXele rauil ff<p ~iph) race, 

wg, el ne\aiyt]Q imror 'ilerai KveQag, SCO 

"EXXiji-eg ov fxero'iev, dXXd (reXfiaat 

vtuiv e-rreydopovTeg, dXXog uXXoae 

cpacjfxu) Kpvfyaiu) (jiotov ekffuxroiaTO. 

6 o evdvg tvg rjicovaevf ov lvve\g cuXov 

' EXXrjyog dyfipog, ov$e tov deuiv <f>&6voy t 

Trdcriy it p o <p to y el tovce yavdp^otg Xoyoy' 

evr ay (j>Xeyu>y dicr'taiy rjXiog ^fto'va 

XtJItj, Kvetyag ce Tejxevog aWepog Xdfiy, 

Talai yeujy arlcpog /xcV ev trrlyoig rptcriv, 

EKirXovg tyvX a a a e i v cat iropovg dXtppodovg' 370 

dXXag ce k~vkX(o rrjaoy A'iay-og Tripil* 

u>g, el fiopoy (pevloiaff "EXXrjyeg KaKOV) 



24 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

vavcriv Kpvcpaiiog Bpavjjidv evpovreg rtvd, 
iratn arepeladai tcparog i]v it ponei jievov. 
roaavr eXe^e Kctpd' V7r sKdvfJOV (j>p£v6g' 
ov yap to fiiXXov ek Qeiov rj w i a t a r o. 
ol B* ovk aKoarfjiioQ, dXXd ireiQapx"}* <Ppevi 
Belttvov t ETTopcrvvovrOy vavfiaTrjg t dvrjp 

ET po TV OV T O KlOTTrjP (TKaXfXOP d^X(f EVYipETfXOV. 

ekei Be (j)iyyog tfXlov /car£00iro, 380 

iced vvZ iir ij e i, nag dvr]p kcjtttjq aVa£ 

eq vavv ij^iop e t, nag 0' ottXiov iirtardrriG. 

tq%lq Be ra%v xape/ca'Xet veiog fiaKpdg, 

ffX £ OV a l B\ lOg EKCLOTOQ 1}V T£Tayp.£VOQ' 

kcu TcdvvvyoL Brj BidrcXoov k ad i era a av 

vatov avatCTEQ 7rdvra vavriKov Xeivv. 

Kal vvt, £ x ^ P E l > K0V% H^ 'EXA^j/wj/ crparoQ 

Kpvtpalov ekttXovv ovBa^irj KadlaraTO. 

Eice'i y£ fxevTOi XevkotojXoq r] fie pa 

TTQifTav KaTEaye yatav, £V(j)£yyrjg IBeIv, 390 

irpioTOV fjLEV t]")(ij KEXaBog 'JLXXrjviov rrdpa 

fjtoX7rr]Bov £V(j>rjjj.rja£v, opdiov B" a/xa 

dvTt]XdXa£,£ vrjaaoTiBog Trirpag 

'H^w* <f>6fioQ Be xdffi fiapfidpoig napfju 

yviofirjg a7roff(pa.X£i(nv' ov yap tog <f)vyrj 

iraidv i<pv fiv ovv oEfivov "TLXXtjpeg t6te> 

dXX eIq fxd\r]V opfxiovTEg Ev^vytj) QpdaEi. 

(rdXinyZ, 3' dvrrj icdvT ekeiv ett e tyX ey e v' 

evOvq Be K(07rrjQ podidBog ZwEfifioXij 

ETzawav dXfjtrjv fipvyiov ek KeXeva^aroQ. 400 

doiog Be Trdvreg r)crav EK§av£~ig iBeiv. 

TO BellOV fJLEV TTpiOTOV EVTaKTOV KEpag 
J]y£l.TO KOfffJKp, BEVTEpOV B' 6 TTCLQ GToXoQ 
£ IT £ £ £ )(W p El, Kal TTapijv 6/AOV K X V E I V 

7coXXr}v fiorjv, '£2 iralBEg 'EXXrjviov, 'ite, 
eXev 6 £ pov t e 7raTpiB\ eXevOepovte Be 
7ra ~iBag, yvvalKag, Qeiov te TraTptotov sBy, 
dtJKag te irpoycvtov' vvv virip iravriov dywv. 
/cat fxrjv nap' rjfiijjv HspcriBog yXioffffrjg podog 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 25 

v 7r r\ vt I a £ e' kovket 1\v jaeXXeiv d^f.irj' 410 

Eidvg de vavg iv vrfi yaXKriprj otoXov 

ETtaifftv. -qp^e c ifJil3oXfjg 'JLXXrjviKrj 

vavg, Ka-rrodpavEi TTUvra <$>OLvi(rarT]g VEuig 

jcopv/i/3'* fiV aXXrjV d' dXXog i d v v e v c*6pv. 

rd 7rpioTa fxiv %r} pEUfia U.EpatKov arparov 

dp T E~t \ £P ' °*G ^ TfXfjdoQ EV (TTEVfp VElZv 

rjQpoMTT, dpioyrj c ovTtg dXXrjXuig naprfv, 

avrol & v(f>' avruJv E^xjooXa'tg ^aXfcoaro/jiOig 

n a i o vt, kdpavov navra Kuirripi) aroXov, 

'EXXrjviicai te vcleq ovk dfpac fiovtog 420 

KVKXf KEpd, E d E IV V V TTT 10 VT O Ze 
<TKU<pT) VEUiV, ddXaffffO. OVKET T)V i£e~IV, 

vavuyiwv nXrjdovaa tcul tyovov fipoTtov 

UKTUl 2.E VEKpuiv ^UlpdhEg T E TtXi\ Q VO V' 

<f>vyrj 3' dtcuafxivg nuaa vavg ij pi a a e to, 

eta I 

vaaurEp i)oav fmpjDapov (TrpaTivf.iaTog. 

toi h\ vote dvvvovg jj tiv lytivutv fiuXoV) 
dyciiffi wrriHv Opava^aaiv r EpEiiriu>v 

ETTCLIOV, tppd\l£0V' OlfttjjytJ t)' OfiOV 

KUKvpaaiv k a r e 1 % e irEXuylav a\«, 430 

Eu)g CiXatyjjfc vvtcTog ofjfx' d<pEtXETO. 

Compare this with " The Lady of the Lake," Canto 
VI. Stanzas 16, 17, 18:— 

" Their light-arm'd archers far and near 

Survey'd the tangled ground, 
Their centre ranks, with pike and spear, 

A twilight forest frown'd, 
Their barbed horsemen, in the rear, 

The stern battalia crown'd. 
No cymbal clash'd, no clarion rang, 

Still were the pipe and drum ; 
Save heavy tread, and armour's clang, 

The sullen inarch was dumb. 



26 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

There breathed no wind their crests to shake, 

Or wave their flags abroad ; 
Scarce the frail aspen seem'd to quake, 

That shadow'd o'er their road. 
Their vanward scouts no tidings bring, 

Can rouse no lurking foe, 
Nor spy a trace of living thing, 

Save when they stirr'd the roe ; 
The host moves, like a deep-sea wave, 
Where rise no rocks its pride to brave, 

High-swelling, dark, and slow. 
The lake is pass'd, and now they gain 
A narrow and a broken plain, 
Before the Trosach's rugged jaws ; 
And here the horse and spearmen pause. 
While to explore the dangerous glen, 
Dive through the pass the archer-men. 

"At once there rose so wild a yell 
Within that dark and narrow dell, 
As all the fiends, from heaven that fell, 
Had peal'd the banner-cry of hell ! 
Forth from the pass in tumult driven, 
Like chaff before the wind of heaven, 

The archery appear: 
For life ! for life ! their plight they ply — 
And shriek, and shout, and battle-cry, 
And plaids and bonnets waving high, 
And broadswords flashing to the sky, 

Are maddening in the rear. 
Onward they drive, in dreadful race, 
Pursuers and pursued ; 
Before that tide of flight and chase, 
How shall it keep its rooted place, 

The spearmen's twilight wood ? — 
' Down, down,' cried Mar, ' your lances down ! 
Bear back both friend and foe !' 



DRAMATICK POWER OF THE IMPERFECTS. 27 

Like reeds before the tempest's frown, 
That serried grove of lances brown 

At once lay levell'd low ; 
And closely shouldering side to side, 
The bristling ranks the onset bide. 
' We'll quell the savage mountaineer, 

As their Tinchel cows the game ! 
They come as fleet as forest deer, 

We'll drive them back as tame.' 

" Bearing before them, in their course, 
The relics of the archer force, 
Like wave with crest of sparkling foam, 
Right onward did Clan-Alpine come. 
Above the tide, each broadsword bright 
Was brandishing like beam of light, 

Each targe was dark below ; 
And with the ocean's mighty swing, 
When heaving to the tempest's wing, 
They hurl'd them on the foe. 
I heard the lance's shivering cra<h. 
As when the whirlwind rends the ash ; 
1 heard the broadsword's deadly clang, 
As if an hundred anvils rang! 
But Moray wheel'd his rearward rank 
Of horsemen on Clan-Alpine's flank, 
— ' My banner-man advance ! 
I see,' he cried, ■ their column shake, — 
Now, gallants ! for your ladies' sake, 

Upon them with the lance !' — 
The horsemen dash'd among the rout, 
As deer break through the broom ; 
Their steeds are stout, their swords are out, 

They soon make lightsome room. 
Clan- Alpine's best are backward borne — 

Where, where was Roderick then I 
One blast upon his bugle-horn 
Were worth a thousand men. 



28 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

And refluent through the pass of fear 
The battle's tide was pour'd ; 
Vanish'd the Saxon's struggling spear, 

Vanish'd the mountain sword. 
As Bracklinn's chasm, so black and steep, 

Receives her roaring linn, 
As the dark caverns of the deep 
Suck the wild whirpool in, 
So did the deep and darksome pass 
Devour the battle's mingled mass : 
None linger now upon the plain, 
Save those who ne'er shall fight again." 

In 18, occurs "was brandishing," elsewhere only aorists. 
The description is made vividly dramatick (so far as this 
effect is produced by the instrumentality of grammatical 
forms), partly by recurrence to the present, and partly by 
the frequent use of the substantive verb with adjectives.* 

In these passages, as in those before compared, the ad- 
vantage of the Greek in the possession of imperfects is very 
apparent. The connexion, however, does certainly impart 
to the English aorist something of an imperfect force. 
Often also the form of expression is altogether altered, in 
order to convey what in Greek would be given simply and 
effectually by the use of the imperfect of the verb. 

* One consequence of the defective manner in which our verb is 
provided, is the paucity of English verbs by which a state can be 
predicated, verbs i. e. equivalent to the substantive verb with an ad- 
jective, such as dXndevzw (<*\ij0ijs <=W). 



CREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 29 

IV.— Comparison of Greek and English Verbal 
Forms. 

The tenses which require moit careful consideration are, 
the present and past imperfect, and aoristick. That the 
English present " I dine" is an aorist, t. e. does not direct 
attention to the time contemporaneous with the action, or 
during which it is going on, will readily appear from con- 
sidering that to the question " what are you doing now?" 
one would not answer " I dine," but " I am dining." But 
in Greek — 

2rp. HpuJTOv /ueV on £p<j.e, dvrifioXu* KUTenre pot. 
Su>. 'AepofiaTui kcu it epitypov u> tov i)\iov. 

{Nub. 225.) 

which should be rendered not " I tread on air," but u I am 
treading," &c. So drrtfloku is more than " I entreat," 
yet " I am entreating you," would seem intolerably heavy. 
The truth is, that although the English, having no present 
imperfect, uses " I am entreating," as most nearly equiva- 
lent thereto, this form is as much too strong as el/ii dvnfioXwv 
would be in Greek. Again, the Greek, having no present 
aoristick, sometimes employs its imperfect where an aorist 
would have been more suitable, and in such cases the im- 
perfect force is modified, exactly as was above remarked to 
be the case, in vivid narration, with the English aoristick 
past.* We must not, however, forget that the dramatick 

* It is obvious that the aorist, simply declaring the fact without 
introducing any distracting notion of time at which or during which, 
declares it with more strength; and that the imperfect, while it repre- 
sents the action or state as now in progression or continuance, and 
therefore states it with more of dramatick vividness, does neverthe- 
less, by the greater number of notions which it introduces, in a 
measure diffuse the attention, and weaken the bare declaration of the 
fact : e. g. to change Shy lock's " / stand here for justice," to " I am 



30 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

character of Greek would, even if it possessed a present 
aoristick, lead it to prefer thereto the imperfect in many 
instances in which the English tongue would have made a 
different choice. Upon the whole, then, we must call to 
mind the observations made in Chapter I., and seeing that 
neither for dptj.g, avr</3o\w, depoflaTuj, nor ^p^povM, have we 
any precise equivalents, we must seek the best substitutes at 
our command in each case. Accordingly we shall translate 

Str. First what thou art doing, I entreat declare to me. 
Soc. I am treading on air, and considering of the sun. 

as the nearest approach to the exact Greek sense, of which 
our language will admit. But we must at the same time 
notice that ee I entreat " is weaker than the original, and 
the other a little stronger, and with a great deal of weight 
and awkwardness which produce a slow dragging movement, 
whereof the original has nothing. 

Thus far we have been considering the immediate and 
most proper use of the present, that viz. in which the predi- 
cation expressed by it is represented either (present aoris- 
tick) as existing merely, or (present imperfect) as in progress 
or duration at the moment of speaking. There are, how- 
ever, in English two cases in which the present is used 
without any exclusive reference to the particular moment at 
which the predication is made, viz. 

(a) When a state is predicated of as having been continu- 
ous and still continuing through the present moment ; e. g. 
"time flies," *. e. is fugitive : " the cuckoo has an extensive 
range in the old world, but is never met with in the new." 

standing," would have this weakening effect. So when Butts tells 
K. Henry VIII. of Cranmer's being kept at the council-chamber 

door, he says, 

" there, my Lord, 

The high promotion of his Grace of Canterbury, 
Who holds his state at door 'mong pursuivants." 

K. H. VIII. v. 2. 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 31 

(H) When an action or occurrence is represented as tak- 
ing place, not continuously, but at intervals the liability of its 
taking place still continuing : in other words, when of any- 
thing it is predicated that it happens from time to time ; e.g. 
"many things happen unexpectedly ;" "the ferryman charges 
sixpence per head." 

In (a) the Greek and English both make use of the pre- 
sent, the only difference being that the Greek imperfect con- 
veys the meaning more adequately than our aorist. 

In (j3) when it is desired to introduce the notion of con- 
tinuance or progression into the predication, the present im- 
perfect is used. In our own language it is often a matter 
of choice whether to employ the aorist, or the substitute for 
the imperfect supplied by the substantive verb with the par- 
ticiple. We say, e.g. either "The wheat-ears migrate in 
September," or " In September the wheat-ears are migrat- 
ing." 

Much more commonly, however, in such cases a mere 
declaration of the fact is all which is desired, and to bring 
in the notion of its continuance would be awkward and su- 
perfluous. In these instances the Greek, which, having no 
present aoristick, must adopt some substitute more or less 
exact, uses the aorist past. Instead of saying, e.g. " many 
things are happening contrary to expectation," it says, 
" many things happened," ttoXXu Trnpa yvio^v tireae, and 
the peculiar sense of the aorist is to be gathered from the 
context. I proceed to illustrate these remarks by quotations. 

Plato Gorg. 511, D. 

Kai uv-7] f.ie i' (sc. ij Kv(jEpi'r]TiKi]) TrpuatfTToKfjiirr) (staid) errrl 
KOi KOGfiia Kai ov (TE/jiyvvETai E(T\r)^uTirTfxivr) ujq V7repij<pai>6v 
n BiaTrpiiT-Of-iEiT], Q.\\d ravrd liairpala^xkvr] r/; pi]7opu:)~], £av 
\iev el AiyivrjQ CEvpo awatj otfxai lu o/3o\oi)c; £ n p d £ ar o, eaV 
2t f£ Alyvirrov ij it: rod Tloyrov, lav TrdfX7ro\v ravrr}Q tt}q 



32 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

fxeyct\r)Q evepyecridg, awaag a vvv Srj eXeyov, Kal avrov Kal 
Trcuhag Kal ^pt^fxara Kal yvva~iKag, dTrofii/Sdaaa sig tov \ifxeva 
dvo hpa^/jidg i 7r jo a £ a r o, kdl avTog 6 e\u>v rrjv rkyy^v Kal 
ravra ^taTrpalajjievog EKpdg napd rrjv OdXarrav Kal rrjv vavv 
7r e p lit ar et iv fierpif a^fxari. \oyi£eada.i ydp oljiai i tt i <r- 
rarai .......... \oyi£erai ouv, K.r.X. 

First, we have the imperfect ov ffsfivvperai, because the 
predication is meant to apply not to a number of separate 
occasions, but to the continuous state of character of the 
art in question, continuing up to and through the present 
time. No simple verbal form will in English give the 
notion of duration belonging to the imperfect ae^vvvETai. 
The combination of substantive verb and participle is inad- 
missible because the English participle in irtg is applied to 
actions only, not to states, and consequently always involves 
the notion of progression. Finding it therefore impossible 
to render ov ffefxrvverai, " is giving itself no airs of im- 
portance," we must adopt as the nearest (though very far 
from an adequate) substitute, our aoristick ^present, and 
translate " gives itself no airs of importance." 

'ETrpafrro is of an action repeated from time to time, and 
the repetition of which is still of habitual occurrence. There 
is not the least desire to note the time during which the 
action of exacting is taken place, and therefore an imperfect 
would be unsuitable. The Greek writer has preferred an 
aoristick past to an imperfect present ; but to us, who possess 
a present aoristick, and are therefore driven to no such shift, 
a literal translation would be nonsense. eVjoa'^aro must be 
rendered by the tense which, had the language possessed 
it, we should doubtless have found in the Greek, " it 
exacts." ttpdrrerai might also have been used, but in that 
case the meaning would have been " is an exactor of," or, 
"is for exacting," " proceeds to exact," rather than, as in the 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 33 

actual text, " exacts on each successive occasion," or per- 
haps with trpaTTETai the sense would have been more 
hiKTiKug, "here we see the art exacting." So when, 
presently after, the pilot himself is introduced, instead of 
irep ten arrive, the force of which would be " pilots walk about 
from time to time — make a practice of walking about under 
such circumstances when they recur," we have 7rept7rare~i " is 
walking about, begins to walk about," and of course 
iiriaraTai, Xoyi^eTai, follow in the same tense, as being said 
of the individual who has been thus set before us. No- 
thing more aids the dramatick character of the Greek 
language than this present imperfect, to which our " he 
is walking about" is the nearest approach, and the force of 
which is often altogether lost by the substitution for it 
(frequently almost unavoidable) of our aoristick present 
" he walks about," which is a mere abstract declaration of 
the fact of his walking, whereas Trepnrarel. is picturesque, 
and gives to our view the walking in its actual continuance 
and progression. 

So again, Gorgias, 526, C. 

Oirep ovv eXeyor, iireifidv 6 Yacdfiavdvg ekeivoq toiovtov riva 
Xaprj, aXXo [jev nepl avrov ovk o\ I e v ovlev, ovd' oartg ovd* 
(ov tiviZv, otl ci KoviipoQ rig' red tovto tcuTiciov d-KEiTE^Ev 
Etg Tuprapov, E7ri(rrifjir)vdfiEVog, idv te IdaifAog e'aV te dviuTog 
(VKJj Elvai. 6 ce eke'hte dcpiKOfJEvog rd TrpocrrJKOVTa irda-^Ei. evIote 
c aWrjv £(<rt£wV oaliog pEfiuoKvlav kui [iet d\?;0cmc, drtpug 
ISiuItov T) aXXov rivog, /LzaAiora fiiv eyioyi (prifjc, tu KaAAocXccc, 
<pt\off6(pov Ta avrov irpa^avrog teal ov iroXvirpaynovrjaavrog ev 
rw (3iu> rjydodt] te tcai eg fxaKapuiv vqaovg aVeV^u^e. rdvrd 
ce ravra ko< o A'iatcog. EKarspog %e tovtwv pdflSop exiov h t /: d- 
'( e C 6 Ze Mivojg KadrjTai fiovog, E\u)y yjpoaovv OKrjTrrpov wg 
<pr)(Ttp 'OfivaaEvg 6 'Ofxrjpov iBeiy avrov 

Xpvcriov crtcrjiTTpov 'Lypvra dEfxicrTEvovra vekvooiv. 

Here we have, first, the imperfect olfcv "he is knowing 

D 



34 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

i, e. is in a state of knowing," then dTi-cVe^e the aorist. 
u Rhadamanthys dispatches from time to time, as occasion 
occurs," 7ra'<rx« " is suffering, begins to suffer, commences 
a state of suffering ;" the imperfect is used because the 
guilty soul does not suffer from time to time, but remains 
in a state of continuous suffering, jydodri and aVeVe/i^e 
aorists to be explained as the former airi-ire/x^e, and dwd^st 
imperfect, because the staff in hand is represented as a 
continuous and constant accompaniment of the judging, 
while the predications of direirefiyf/e, rjydadr], &c are of 
single actions considered of as momentary, (i.e. without 
reference to the time during which they are in progress), 
and repeated from time to time. In the same manner 
the imperfect Kadrirai is spoken not of a repeated action, 
but of a continuous state. 

In such cases it will often depend entirely upon the 
writer's choice whether he employ an aorist or an imperfect. 
And he will adopt the one or the other, according as the 
action predicated be considered of rather* objectively as 
frequently repeated, or subjectively as being, or the ten- 
dency to its repetition being, a continuous state or attribute 
of the subject. The choice too will frequently be deter- 
mined by the more or less of dramaticity which it is desired 
to introduce ; we may wish to say " he does this often," 
merely declaring the fact, or " he is doing this often," 
calling up at the same time an image of the action as in 
progress. How the frequent occurrence of imperfects in 
Greek is connected with the dramatick tendency of the 

* The context seems sufficiently to explain the use made of the 
words " objectively" and "subjectively;" but it may not be amiss to 
warn the junior reader, collecting, it may be, by induction of pas- 
sages, the meaning he is to attach to the terms, that their ordinary 
import is quite different from that above assigned to them. 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 35 

language and the character of the people, has been noticed 
in a former chapter. 

These remarks will be further illustrated by an exami- 
nation of the following passages : 

Plat. Phaedr. 250, E. 

'O fiev ovv fir] peoreXtjg ij $iE<pdap}i£vog ovk o^eojg evdivde eke~i- 
cfe (pip it a i irpog avro to KaXXog, &EojfXEvog avTOv Tr)v ttJce 
eVwvv/^tav. wot ov a eft et a i 7rpocropiZv, a'A\' rjcovrj irapadovg 

TETpUTTOCOC VOfJlOV fici'lVElV £ 7T I % £ t p E 7 KM IT a id O 7T O p £ ~l V, 
KUl vftpEL 7TpO(TOfJlX(JJV OV S £ 3 O I K £ V Ol/'c' O I <T% V V £ T a I TTCipd 0V- 

aiv r]hovr]v cookiov. 6 £e dpTiTiXrjg 6 tQv tote 7roXvdEafnov, orav 
BEOEiCEg -npuauTcov 'ihj KaXXog ev ^Ef.uf.ii]fiivov, r) Tiva (TOJpciTog 

ICEUV, KplOTOV fJLEV E<j>piL,E t Kai Tl TUV TOTE V 7T 7} X £ V CIVTOP LEl- 

ficiTiov, EiTa irpoaopwv tog 6eov aifjETai, Kai ti fir} ce^ieitj ti)v 
rrjg otyocpa fiaviag cotav, dvot dv wg dydXfxaTi Kai 0£w Tolg 
TrcuciKo~Lc. uoito. ce avTOv olov fV ri]g <ppiKi]g, u£7-a/3o\»; te Kai 
Xlpiog Kai dEpnoTtjg drjdrjg Xa fjijjdvEi. CE^afXEVog yup tov KaXXovg 
rrjv diropporjv did Ttjjy ou/JaViuv, idEpfidvdrj j) r'j tov iTTEpov <j>v- 
(Ttg dpcETai. OfpfiavdivTog ci etqkt] Ta tteo\ ti)v ek^vctiv, a 
irdXai v7ro aKXr)pOTr)Tog crvfj/JEfivKOTa elpyE fir} fiXaoTavEiv. 
ETnppvEitrqg %e rrjg rpotyrjg £cr)<ri te Kai wpfJirjaE ipveaOai aVo 
rrjg pi£i]g 6 tov TTTEpov tcavXog xnro ttciv to Ttjg \pv%rjg Eicog. 
irdoa ydp rjv to irdXai TTTEpwTog. Ze7 ovv iv tovto) bXi] kui 

dvaK1]KtEl Kai OTTEp TO TU)V OCOVTO(fiVOVVTU)V TTudog TTEpi TOVg 

otovTag yiyvETai oTav dpTi (pvwvi Kvijcrig te Kai dyavaKTijatg 

TTEpl Ta OltXa, TUVTOl 1 I)/ 7T£7T OvQeV 7] TOV TZTEpotyVElV Up^OfiEVOV 

\pv)(ij' Qei te kui dyavaKTEl Kai yapyaXi^ETai (j)vov(ra tu TTTEpd. 

In this, as in the last preceding extract, the imperfects 
indicate progress or duration, the aorists something fre- 
quently repeated the attention not being directed to the 
time occupied in each repetition, imxupci " he is en- 
deavouring, he begins to go about to." " As he is behold- 
ing it he feels* (is feeling, is in a state of feeling) no 

* Often ov coalesces so closely with the following verb as almost 
to form a compound therewith. In such cases the aorist of repetition 

d2 



36 THE POWERS OP THE GREEK TENSES. 

reverence, but gives himself over to pleasure, and like a 
brute beast is seeking to be gratifying himself, and, having 
outrage for a companion, is not ashamed to be pursuing 
pleasure contrary to nature." Such a translation, the most 
nearly literal of which our language admits, shows at once 
the inadequacy of its verbal forms. The intolerable awk- 
wardness of the circumlocution with the participle makes it 
frequently necessary to render the Greek imperfect by an 
aorist. Very often the Greek present imperfect may best 
be translated by " begins to ;" e. g. in the above passage 
after vnrjXdev, said of the momentary feeling of alarm, we 
find " as he continues to look on, he begins to reverence," 
and so afterwards £e7 re xal dvcwrjidei, " it begins both to boil 
and ooze forth." 

In a similar manner may the interchange of the aorist 
and imperfect be explained in the Phaedrus, 254, B. (The 
description is of the behaviour of the steeds of the soul.) 

rw £e (but the two) kclt dp^aQ jueV d vt it elver ov (are strug- 
gling in opposition) dyavoiKTOvvTe, wq Seivd teal irapdvofia ctVayjca- 
Zojievo)' TeXevrojpre Be, orav /Jirjdev y irepag kclkov, tt ope v ear- 
do v (they are proceeding, begin to proceed) dyopevw, e'lfarre 
Koi ofioKoyrja-avre Troirjcreiv to keXevojizvov (not, " that which is 
bidden," but " which the other is bidding them,") nal irpoq av'rw 
t eyevovTO (momentary, "they come to the point,") kcu el- 
dov ("and see") rrjv o-^lv rrjv t&v 7tcuc)ik:wv darpd^TOvaav ; k, t. X. 

Eurip. Heraclid. 330. 

del 7ro6' rjde yaia toIq d[j.r)')(dvoiQ 
ovv rip Sacala) fiovXer at TrpoaitXpeXelv^ 
Toiyap ttovovq fir} fivpiovg vrrep <f>tXu)v 
ijveyKe (it bears), k. t. X. 

could hardly be used, considering that in ov (piptn-at, for example, the 
assertion is necessarily not that from time to time, ov <p£pETai f but 
that continuously, always, ov Qipvrai. 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 37 

Plat. Phaedr. 269. C. 

eV £e tovtov tov ttclQovq to. npo tt}q Teyyi)Q dvayycua /jiadrj- 
Har 'ixovTEQ (the knowledge necessary as a preliminary to the 
art) prjToptKrjv tpi)Qr]oav EvprjKEvai, Kal ravra Brj ciSdatcovTEg 
ciXXovg rj yovvr ai <r<f>iai teXeojq pijropixrjv dedicd^dat. 

¥T}dT)(Tav " they think," but ^tcdaKovreg " when they are 
teaching," denoting progression, probably determined the 
change to the imperfect jyovvrai. 

Ibid. 267. C. 

Ticriav tie Topylav te edaofiev evSetv ; ol irpo tuv dXrjdwv rd 
eiKora elSov ujq TtfxrjTea jxdWov, rd te av (TfiiKpd fxeyaXa teal rd 
[iEyaXa ofxucpd (f>aivE<rdai Troiovffi Sid piofjijy Xo'you, Kaivd te dp- 
\alioc, rd r ivavria K'curfaJg, o~vvTop.iav te \6yiov teat dirEipa /JLrJKTj 
7rtpi TravTiov av evpov. 

e\Zov " see," iroiovoi M are for making, we find them making," 
dvevpov " discover."* 

lb. 263. A. 

2wk. "Orav tiq ovo/jlu ftrp aiCrjpov 77 dpyvpov, ap' ov to av- 

TO ffaVTEQ SlEVOTJdrjflEP] 

4>a7£. Kal fidXa. 

2w*r. TV £' oTav CiKaiov ?;' dyadov ; OVK a\\o£ dXXrj (piper at 
Kal d fx<p La ft t)t ov [IE v oKXt\Xoi.Q te *rai tj/mv avrolg ; 

4>at(5. riaju fiEv ovv. 

In such passages, as was before remarked, the use of the 
imperfect or aorist is often a mere matter of choice. Here, 
however, we may see a reason for the form adopted in each 
case. ciErojjdrj^ty is momentary, "we understand, conceive 
of;" cpipE-ai and d^i(ptafti]Tov^Ev are in the imperfect, as better 
assorting with the continuous state of disagreement, and the 
question arising and being discussed thereupon. 

Plat. Rep. VI. 508. D. 

Ovtu) Toivvv Kal to Tjjg \pV)(TJg wce voEi' orav fXEV ov car a- 

Ast and Stalbaum give a different explanation of this interchange 
of tenses. 



38 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

Xdfjnrei dXrjdedre (where is shining both truth) Kal to ov, sk 
tovto aVfjOa 0777a i, ivorjffi te Kal syvio avro Kal vovv 'e\elv 
<palv et at ("on fastening upon the place where both truth and 
reality are shining, it perceives and recognises them ;" aorist, the 
sight and recognition being considered of as momentary, " and 
appears," literally, "is appearing," the imperfect is used of the 
state in which it begins to be, and to continue, "to be possessing 
reason,") orav de eIq to rw <tk6to> KEKpafXEvov, to yiyvofisvov 
te Kal aVoXXv/xevov, £o£a£ei te koX dfxftXvojTTEi (imperfects 
regarding the continuous state, " it begins to fall into the dull- 
sightedness of opinion,") k. t. X. 

Gorg. 484. A. 

'EaV <)e ye ol/uai (jjvffiv 'iKavrjv ykvr\Tai tyjav dvrjp irdvra rav- 
ra dTroaeiad^EVOQ Kal htappri^ag koX foarpvywv, KaTarraTtjaag ra 
rjfjLETepa yjoa^ujuara /cat fxayyavEVfxaTa teal iirtoddg kuI vojiovg 
tovq irapa. <j)V(riv airavrag, EiravaoTag a v £(p dvrj hEcnroTtig 
rijjLETEpoQ 6 dovXog, Kal ivTavda E^iXafjiipE to Trjg tyvOEwg 
Slicaiov. 

Aristoph. Vesp. 581. 

Kav avXr)TY)Q ys ^Iktjv viK<ji, TavTrjg ijfxiv ETrl^Etpa 

iv (pop^Eia. Tolffi SucatTTalg E^odov 7i'vXr}<j diciovoiv* 

Kav d7rodvr}(TK(ov 6 Trartjp to) £w KaraXaVwv 7ra7tT Eir'iKXripov, 

tcXasiv -qjjLEiQ fxaKpd. Trjv K£<j)aXr]v eittovteq rrj Siadrjicri 

Kal ty\ KoyKrj tt\ irdvv ce/uvwf Tolg ay]\x£ioiaw £7rovcry 

E^ofXEV TavTrjv octtiq av ijfiag dvTifioXijaag dvaitdar], 

Kal TOVT dvVTTEvQvVOt SptofAEV, TCJV (? oXX(OV OvhfxC dp-)(lj. 

Note the change from Uojjlev " we give/' i. e. from time to 
time, as often as it occurs, to fyw/zg*^ which expresses the 
irresponsible state of the dicast in his course of thus acting. 

Equitt. 257. 

V7T dvdp(jJV TV7TTOfXai £,VVli)flOTU)V. 

Xo. 'Ev diKy y etteI ra Koivd irplv Xa^Etv fear eg 6 1 Eig, 
KU7T o<rvKa£ £ig 7r le^wv rovg virEvdvvovg, aKotrdov 
oaTig avT(Zv <ifi6g ecttiv r) ttettiov rj /jut) 7re7rwv. 
ky}v tlv avTwv yvwg aV/oa'y/uov' ovra Kal KEfflvoTa 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 39 

Karayaycov elg Xeppoyrjffov ^io\a/3cJ^, ay/cvptcag, 
elr dirocrrpExpag rov (J/zoV, clvtov e v e K o X r\ (d a a a g . 

KO.I (TKOTTEIQ ye TUtV -KoXirQv OtTTlQ E<TTIV dfXVOKCOV, 

irXovaioQ, k. r. X. 

Ibid. 1119. 

e'-ya) £' eklov 

TUVT TJXldld^U). 

avTog re yap fjSofjLai 
fipvXXcov to Kad' Tjfiepav 
kXetttovto. te fiovXofxat 
Tpetyeiv tva Trpoardrnv. 
tovtov tV orav ;} ttXeojq, 
dpag e 7r d r a £ a. 

All the imperfects are of continuous states ; the aorist, of 
an action repeated and considered as momentary. 

The change from the continuous state to the single action 
considered of as momentary, is marked distinctly 

Nubes, 393, where Socrates says of Zeus — 

Ei-KEp (3d XX EL TOVQ ETTlQpKOVQ TTWQ OV\l St/iWI/' EVETpi)(JE \ 

" If his manner is to strike the perjured, how is it that he does not 
blast Simon?" 

Ibid. 1180. 

OTTEp ol TrpoTEi'dai yap CoKovai /jloi ttoleIv 
07TLOQ ra^iora ra 7rpvrav£7' v^eXoiaro 
Sia rovro irpovTEvdEwav rjfJEpa pi(i. 

Iokovoiv of the continuous state, TrpovrivQEvoav of the recur- 
ring action considered of as momentary. 
Acharn. 532. 

ravTi ffv ToXnyg -rrTOJ-^og wv rjpag Xeytiv ; 
a'l (TVKOipdvTng ci rig rjv loveihiaag; 

Ibid. 639. 

Aevpo Mova eX6e 

O'tov e£ dvBpdKiov TTpivivtov <pE\^aXog avry'Xar', £pE6i£6 
fj-Evog ovpia pnrlSi. 



40 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

Nubes, 347. 

Swfc. y iy v ovrai navO' on (3 o v\o vrai' k^t r\v jjep 'ihojfft 
KOfiriTr\v -^ 

aypiov riva t&v Xav'nov tovtmv, oiov nsp tov tEjevcHfxivTOV, 
(TK(jJ7rrovaai rrjv /mavlav avrov KevTavpoig ijicaaav avrdq. 
SrjO. rt yap, r\v dprraya twv Zrifxoaiixtv Karidoxri ^ifjuova, rt jbpwaiv ; 
Swkn a,7ro(palvovaai rr\v (pvaiv avrov Xvkoi i^ai^vrjg iyevovro. 

(3ov\ovrai, ytyvovrai of continuous states, rjicacrav, iyevovro of 
single actions repeated, without reference to the time occu- 
pied during each repetition. 
Heraclidse, 428. 

to tekv eoiyfxev vavriXoiffiv o'itiveC 
yeifjLWVOQ UtyvyovTEQ aypiov jjlevoq 

€q x £t p a yy Gw J n4' av > eiTa x e P ao ® £V 

irvoalrnv yXdOrj crav eq ttovtov ttoKlv. 

ovtu) £e XTj/dEiQ rija^' dTrwdw/JLEcrda yrjg, k. r. X. 

Medea, 244. 

dvqp (? orav rolg 'ivdov axdr)Tai fyviov 

e£w ^oXoiv k 7r a v a e KapViav aor}Q. 
orav ax^J/rai " when he is in a state of being annoyed," 
EiravffE " he relieves," considered of as momentary. 

Instances might easily be accumulated to almost any 
amount. It is, however, sufficiently manifest from those 
already given, that (a) when a state is predicated of as 
lasting through the present moment, or (]3) an action is 
predicated of as repeated from time to time, and still liable 
to be repeated again, either the present imperfect or (in 
defect of a present aoristick) the past aoristick is employed 
by the Attick writers, the former or the latter according 
as they do or do not wish to call attention to the dura- 
tion or progress of the state or action, i.e. to depict as 
well as to declare. Hence, from the nature of the case, it 
is much more usual in (a) to find the imperfect, while in 
(]3) the aorist is at least equally common, and would be 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 41 

much more so for but that fondness for depicting, which 
has been before noticed as characteristics of the Greek 
language. 

The frequency of this use of the past aorist to supply the 
place of an aoristick present in predications, which, though 
respecting the past as well as the present, are nevertheless 
mentally referred to present time, with its consequent inter- 
change with the present imperfect, so far caused its proper 
relation to past time to be lost sight of, that not unfre- 
quently this aorist is found even when the predication has 
reference to the moment actually present with the speaker. 
This occurs most frequently in such expressions as — 

Nub. 185. 

ri tdav fxaaaQ ; rw <rot Sokovoiv eucCKOi ; 

Acharn. 553. 
Heraclid. 804. 

KcnreiT kXtiev a» ffrpciTjjy oq 'Apyodev 
rjxEtQ, ri Tijrce yaiav ov\ eidaafjiev ;* 
" why do we not but rest?" 
Plat. Phaed. 86. D. 

Aia/3\c^ae ['after looking romid,' lit. « looking different ways'] 
ovv 6 2a>K.-pa7?jc» wcnrep ra 7ro\Xa eluidei, xat pEitidffag, AiKuia 
fiEVTOi, £<pT], Ae'ya 6 Zififjiicic. el ovv tiq vfxuiv EviropuTEpog Eftov f 
ri ov\ air EKp Lv o.t o ; 

" why does he not answer?" 
But also, in various other ways, whenever no attention to 
duration or progress is to be introduced into the predication, 
eg- 

• Common, however, as this use is, it by no means excludes that 
of the present imperfect. 
Eajiitt. 1-203. 

t'l ov o ta k p Ive is Aij/x' onroTtpo-i ictti vu>v 
dvi)p dfxtivuiv irtpl <ti Kal Tt/i/ yaaTtpa j 



4?2 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES, 

Medea, 442. 

aol %' ov7re 7rarpi)Q dofiot 

Svffrave 

orwv tie XetcrpoJV 

dXXa J3a<rl\£ia Kpdafftav 
SofjLOiaiv i 7r i a r a. 

Acharn. 168. 

TavA 7rejOi£/^e6' ol UpvrdveiQ irdoyovrd \le 

iv rrj 7rarpidi ; 

lt Do you, Prytanes, permit me to be thus treated ?' 

lb. 251. 

<paXfjg iralpe Bay/aov .... 
efcrw a etel 7r po G£~iir ov> 

" I address thee." 

lb. 460. 

irpofiaive vvv & Ovfii* ypa/jifii) <T avrrjl. 
effTYjKae ; ovk el Kara7ri(t)v TLvptTridrjv ; 
i it rj v e a' aye vvv w rdXaiva mpctia, k. t. X. 
" I praise thee." 

Ibid 850. Dicaeopolis addresses the eel — 

u> 0tXraV?? <ru ical 7rdXai 7rodovfi£vr] 

r/XO £Q TTodElVtj fJLEV Tpvy(ti$lKO~lQ \0p6lS 

<f>iXri $e M.opvx<p* 

" You come." 

Androm. 1207. 

0E. Il^Xev, x a 'l 0lv T ^ v a ^ v ndpoq vvfjKpEVfjdrojv, 
rjich) GeVtG, Xnrovoa N^pewg Bofiovg, 
fccu 7rpwra jjiev arot tQv TrapeoTttiTuv KaKtHv 
fxrj^iv tl Xiav dvffcpopuv 7raprj v £cra. 
" I exhort thee. 

Heraclid. 719. 

0E. vvv fJLEV 7rop£vov yv^ivog, £V he. rdlfidl 

K0OfX(O TTVtcd^OV T(p$\ £yu <T 010(0 T£(s)Q. 

10. /caXwg eXe^ag. 

" You say well." 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 43 

lb. 796. 

0E. veoq [JiedE<TTr)K ek yepovTOQ avOig av. 
AA. davfjid(TT e\e£ag. 

" You tell a wonder." 

Medea, 77. 

an hi\6 11ECF& dp\ el kclkov Ttpoooioo\iEv 
veov naXaico, nplv Toft i^vrXr^KEvai. 

lb. 271. 

<T£ Tlf)V (TKvQptOTiOV KCU TTOCTEl QvfXOVfXEVt]V 
Mlj^EtaV, eXttOV TTJff^E "/?]£ Et,CO TTEptyV. 

* I bid thee. 

Aristoph. Equitt. 353. 

KA. ifjioi yap avridriKag dvQpioiriov nv ; uarig, K. r.X. 
" Do you set against me." 

So, at v. 690, of the same play, Cleon says— 
eI \ir\ a aTToXiaaifx eI, k, t. X. 
to which the black-pudding seller replies — 

ij adriv aTTEiku'ig, iyiXaaa \poXoKOfnriaig 
an ETTvcup tara fiodtova, 7rep i ekko k Kvaa. 
and so ijadriv is frequently used, e. g. 
Nub. 997. 

IIA. uvroi f.id tov Am tov fiiyav teal tovq Qeovq 
ifjiot Karair poil,Ei. ST. davfjiaffiiog rjadrjv Oeoiq, 
" I like the gods amazingly." 

Equitt. 994. 
AIIM. raurl rt iart ; KA. Xoyia. A. iravr ; K. idavfjiaaag ; 

Vesp. 510. 

4>IA. dXX* rjdtov av 

SiKtdiov (Tfiixpov <pdyoifx av, iv Xond^i TTETrvtyfiEVOv. 
BA. vrj At" eIQktQtiq yap ifiEadai tolovtoiq npayfiaffi. 

Heraclidse, 233. 

uyxTEtp' aKovaag rovahE ffVfjLtyopdg, aVct£. 
rrjv £' EvyivEiav rrjg rv'x^C riKiofJitvriv 
vvv St} fjidXttrr eoeIIov. 



44 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

lb. 788. 

w 0t\ra0' rjhe a rjfxepa dirjXaaev 
■qXevdepwadai rdicrde toiq dyyeXjiaai, 
" Accomplishes your freedom." 

Eurip.Iph. T. 1129. 

00. tL <T eanv *I(f>iyiveia kcllvov ev dojioig ; 
I<&. a7T£ 7r rv a data yap cU'^wju' eirog rode* 

Plato, Phsedrus, 274, C\ 

2£2. cikotJv y e^w \ey£ij> 7W irpoTepwv, to & dXrjdig av- 
rot (pi deol scil.) \aaaiv. el £e tovto evpoijiev clvtoX, dpa av 
kd ijfjur fxeXoL ti t&v dvdpojirivojv dolstafidriov ; 

$AL yeXdlov ijpov, dXX a 0^'e aKtjKoevai Xiye. 

lb. 264, A. 

212. 'H 7to\\ov £e7v foifce iroieiv ode ye o ^rjTOvfxev, og ovde 
air dpyfiQ a\V aVo TeXevTtjg eE, vTzriag dvaTraXiv diavelv eVi- 
\eipei Ka\ ap^erai . • . . r) ovdev eiirov, QaUdpe, (j)iXrj KecpaXrj ; 
"or 25 it nothing what I say?" 

In the lines, Nub. 529, the aorists might indeed be trans- 
lated as preterites,but,after the passages already adduced, we 
shall have no difficulty in considering them rather as substi- 
tutes for the present aoristick, interchanged with the imper- 
fects for the sake of variety. 

wg Se aui(f)pwv earl (j)v'aei, aKeipaad' rjrig 7rpwra fiev 

ovhev 77 X 6 e pa\pajj.evr] okvtivov Kadet/JLevov, 

ovB* e a k i0ify e tovq (f>aXaicpovg, ovde KopBa^ elXicvaev, 

ovde 7rpe(rflvTriQ 6 Xeyo)v tcltty} rrj fiaKTrjpia 

r vitrei top TtdpovT d(j>avi^iov icovripd <7fcwju/zara, 

ovh* eiarjZe dadag eypv<r\ ovd' lov iov {3oa. 

dXX' avrrj /cat Totg eizeaiv Tnarevova eXrfXvd e v. 

The sum, in fact, of what we learn from these and many 
other like examples, is ( this: The Greek, in its fondness 
for imperfects — that is, in other words, its fondness for 
presenting a picture to the fancy rather than barely stat- 
ing a fact for the intellect—continually prefers to employ 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 45 

a present imperfect in cases wherein we should assuredly 
prefer an aorist. Where the English says "he does," the 
Greek, in at least eight cases out of nine, chooses rather 
to say "he is doing." I say, in eight cases out of nine, 
but there still remains the ninth ; there are cases undoubt- 
edly, in which, even in Greek, to introduce the notion of 
progression or continuance is altogether undesired. In 
English such cases can occasion no difficulty. Our pre- 
sent aoristick is the very form required. But the Greeks 
have no aorist of present time. They employ, as we have 
seen, their past aorist instead thereof. In illustration, I 
add a few more examples: 

Plat. Rep. III. 406. D. 

rcjcrw, i)v c e'ycJ, ra/tiw (when he is unwell) d£,ioi napd 
tov iarpov tydpfiuKov 7rtu)v iiifiiaiu to yoarjfju i) kutuj nadapQiiq 
7) Kavaei tj TOfurj \pij(rdfjLEvoc dirriXXd\dat* idv tie Tig avTip pm- 
Kpuv oiairap -rrpoiTTdTTi), ttiXuui te Trept rqv tcEtpaXijv 7repiTi0uQ 
Kal rd tovtoiq hrdfieva, ra^v eIttev (he says directly), on ov 
erxo^n KapLvuv (that he has not leisure to be an invalid) ovoi 
XvititeXe'i ovtio £ijv, vooi]piaTi tov vuiv -rporriyovTa, Ttjg %e Trpo- 
K£ifxevr)g ipyaaidg (the work he has lying before him) dfiekovrrxu 
Kat fiETa Tuvra yaiptiv tiTrujy rw toiovtij) iaTpiZ, tic ti)v Eiiodvlav 
ciuiTav ipfldg, vyirjg yEvofiEvog £rj tu euvtov Ttpd-Truv' Idv Ze 
fir] ikuvov 7j to auifia VTtVSy KtlV t TEX£VTi)<rag TrpayfidTU)i> U7r^\- 
Xdyr) (he dies and (/its quit of troubles). 

Ibid. V. 462. C. 

o\ov (for instance), orav ttov (you know) rjp.ivv cdxTvXog tov 
T^iyi)* irdffa t) Kuiviovia 1) kutu to au>p.a irpog rrjv \pv^rjv te- 
rapEvr} elg fjiav avvTaliv ti)v tov dpyovrog iv avTrj tjadETO re 
(is both sensible of it) kui Trdaa dfia ^vyTjXyrjffE ( sympathizes ) 
fXEpovg -rrovrjaarrog oXtj, kai ovtio ctj X(yop,Ev y on 6 avtipuwog 
tov ZaKTvXov dXyE~i. 

Sympos. 197. A. 

dXXa rrjy tGv te-^viZv Crjpiovpylav ovk 'iff/JEv, otl ov /jev dv 
6 deog ovTog cildaKaXog yeVijrai, iXXoyifiog ku\ tyavog d-Triflr), 
ov h" dv "Epiog fxrj t(j)d\l>r]T at, a::oTEivog ; 



46 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

It sometimes happens that the substitution of a past form 
for an aoristick present, causes the past tense imperfect of 
a succeeding verb also to be used where the sense would 
require the present, e. g. 

Vespae, 1451. 

KairoL 7roWol tclvt tiradov 
Z,vv6vt£q yvu)jj.aig erepojv 
jjierefidWovTO tovq TpoirovQ. 
tclvt etcclQov "experience this," fiETE^dWovTt) tovq rpoxovQ 
"they begin to get altered," literally, " they were begin- 
ning ;" the past tense is used on account of the preceding 
past form ettclQov. 

Very similarly, " from the frequent connection of the per- 
fect with the imperfect subjunctive, it became an idiom of 
the Latin language to use the imperfect, even where a present 
action was spoken of, if it were possible to conceive it as 
progressive, and therefore in one part past, even while another 
part still continued. Such sentences as, diu dubitavi num 
melius sit (I have long doubted); saepe mecum cogitavi 
quidnam causae sit, are less in accordance with Latin idiom 
than num melius esset, quidnam causa? esset; even though 
the verb be here used as a perfect, not as an aorist." 

(Zumpt. Lat. Grammar lxxiv. note 2.) 

I proceed to notice the use of the imperfects, so common 

in Greek, to indicate attempt or desire, spoken of being for 

doing something, or of some state coming into being or about 

to be, e. g. 

Aristoph. Nubes, 1403. 

OifiOL itapavoiaQ, ioq efxaiv6fir]v apa 
ot £^|8a\\ov tovq Qeovq did Sw/cjoar^v. 
" when I was for expelling." 
lb. 61. 

fiETa ravd* ottojq viov iyEVEd' vloQ avToai 
Efj.oi te drj ical Trj yvvcuKi rdyadrj 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 4<7 

7T£pl TOVVOfXaTOQ lr] \tEvQeV iXoidopOVflEda' 

rj fiiv yap 'itvkov ttpogetiQei "irpog rovvofia 
Sdvdnrnov, rj ^dpiinrov^ rj KaXXnnridi]v' 
iyto ce tov irdirirov \Skfir)v tyetlioviZriv. 

Snug vujv EyivEQ\ aorist, u when we got." 

iXoidopovnEda, " we were railing, began to rail at one another." 

npoffETtdEt, " was for attaching." 

indifxriv, " was for having him named." 
Vespae, 715. 

'AXX' OTrorav jxev cEiauxf avroi rrjv Ev/3oiov dtSoacri. 
** they are for giving, they are offering." 
In Eurip. Iphig. T. 1278, when the messenger is telling 
of the tricks used by the chorus to induce him to depart, he 
says to Thoas — 

xpEvCuig dp ovtoi, real p dirrjXavvov cojjiov, 
tog EKTog E'irjg. <rv ce kot oIkov yaff dpa, 
"falsely then these women spake, and they were for driving me away 
from the house, by saying that, &c." 
Demosth. in Mid. 539. 

ko.\ tovtov ovc Ei yiyovEv tic tog ovce yiyvto(TKtov» 
"not knowing nor yet in the way to know so much as his existence." 
Plato Protag. 317. A. 

TO ovv diroctcpdoKOvra pr) ZvvaoQai d7rocpdvai, dXXd Karatpavrj 
el vat, 7roXXr| fitopia teat rov itnytipijixaror. 

" that one should attempt escape and not be able to effect it." 

Andocides de myster. 57. 

ei p.EV yap r\v cvolv to tripov iXiadat, ij KaXtog drroXEadat 
rj aloyptog atoQijvat . . ., kuitoi ttoXXoX av koi tovto e'iXovto, 
to £rjv TTEpl nXEiovog iroirjadfiEvot rj to tcaXtog diroQavE'iv' ottov 
hi tovtiov to kvavKtoTOTOV r)v, anoirijoavTi jiev avTto te dio-%- 
ttrra dicoXioOat firj^EV doEfirjaavTi, eti ce tov TraTEpa iTEpiiCEiv 
aTToXofXEvov teal tov .... ovg ov$E\g aXXoc dntoXXvEV 
(was about to destroy) rj iyto firj iitrtov tog ETEpot rjfiaprov. 
AiotcXEthiig fjtEV yap \pEvadfiEvog 'eh](TEv avTOvg, atoTrjpia te avTtov 
dXXrj ov<)£fj.ia r\v rj irvdiadat 'Adrjvatovg Travra tu irpayQivTa' 
tyovtvg ovv avTtov iytyvofirjv fxtj eittiov v/juv a rjtcovaa (1 then, 



4-8 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

if I failed to tell you what I heard, was about to become) en h 
rpiaKoaiovQ ' AQtjvcuW dirioXXvov (was about to destroy, was be- 
coming destroyer of three hundred Athenians), koX rj noXtg ev 
KciKoig toIq jxeyiaroig eyiyvero (and the state was coming to 
be in evils the very greatest). 

From this passage, and many others of a similar character, 
it is easy to understand the propriety of the use of the 
imperfects which we are at present considering.* ovg ovfclg 
aXXog a.7r(o\Xv£v " whom no one else was destroying ;" the 
use of an imperfect implies that, at the time to which the 
predication refers, the action spoken of was not accomplished 
but was in course of accomplishment, inasmuch as steps were 
taking with a view to its being accomplished. Now these 
steps may be part of the visible action, or they may be 
merely the workings in the mind of him who is designing it. 
During the whole period intervening between the com- 
mencement of the plan's formation, and its actual objective 
accomplishment, the action is in progress, and the imperfects 
will properly be used in speaking of it. When Iphigeneia 



rj TaXaiv virep nvpag 
fxerapffia Xrr(pQe~ia eK.aivo\ir\v fytysi, 
nothing can be implied by the imperfect but that steps were 
taking having her death for their object ; and this might have 
been said, with equal truth, at any period after the resolution 
to sacrifice her had been adopted. 

Similar is the use of the imperfect in such passages as— 
Gorg. 471. B. 

Kai ravra ddacrjaag eXadev eavTOV dBXnaraTog yevofxevog kcli 
ov fAsrefJieXriaev avVw, dXX' oXlyov varepov top ddeX(f>ov top yvrjaiov, 
tov TLepSiKKov viov, 7rcuCa ojq eVraenj, ov y dpj(rj eyiyvero Kara 
to Siicaiov, k. t. X. " whose the throne was coming to be." The 

* " Imperfect of commencement" would perhaps be the best name 
to apply to this idiom. 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 49 

imperfect might indeed have had dv attached, but it is perfectly- 
intelligible and more strictly accurate without the particle. 
Thucyd. VIII. 86. 

Ktu idoKEi ' A\Ki(3iddriQ irpiiTOv tote teal ovMvog eXaaaov ttjv 
ttoXlv io(f>E\rj<ra.L' lopfirjUEViov yap tlov ev Sdfiio 'Adrjvuiiov 7tXei~v 
E7ti atpag clvtovq, ev id tracpEtr-ara 'Iiovidv xa\ 'FAXtjctitovtov Evdvg 
eI%ov oi ttoXe^iiol, KioXvTiqQ yEVEadai. 

Gbller compares the Latin babebant for habuissent. The 
expression remains quite intelligible when literally trans- 
lated ; " for the Athenians at Samos being bent upon sailing, 
in which case the enemy was most manifestly in immediate 
possession of Ionia and the Hellespont, &c." The passage 
from the Crito adduced by Dr. Arnold, appears to me to be 
of quite a different kind : J el ^ afcoXovdtjaofUEv, says Socrates, 

SiaipdepuvfiEV EKE~tvo teal XiojjrjaofXEOa, 6 tio juev cucatio JjeXtiov 
iyiyvETo, rtp %e uciklo uitioWvto. The imperfects are used 
because Socrates is thinking of the time during which it had 
been gradually appearing, as the discussion went on, that 
the thing spoken of was bettered by justice, and destroyed 
by injustice. " It seems to be perishing under the applica- 
tion of injustice," would have been the corresponding words 
of the speaker, when the conversation was actually taking 
place. More to the purpose is Dr. Arnold's other quotation, 
from Herod. VII. 220. The author is telling us, that Leo- 
nidas at Thermopylae sent away the rest, but thought it not 
honourable to depart himself: avrto U dwuvai ov caXcJc cx«k 

fXEVOVTL CE aVTOV kXeoQ fJLEya eXeLtTETO, Kill T] 2,TrupTT]Q tvcaifxovi-q 
OVK i^TjXEtlpETO. 

Demosth. in Meid. 542. 

BovXofiEvog Se to piXXov \a0etv, tpvXdtag rrjv reXEvraiav rffxEpav 
tiov OiairrjTiov rrjv tov QapyrfXiiovog rj tov ^KipoipopiiZvoQ yi yvo- 
fiEvrjv, eIq rjv 6 /jlev tjXOe tlov hatrtfruv, 6 <f ovk ^XOe, k. t. X.* 

* In order to understand this passage, the learner must bear in 
mind, that the Attick calendar was formed on the hypothesis, that 

E 



50 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

lb. 540. 

Kai TTpwrov fih (says Domosthenes, giving an account of 
the proceedings of the man who came to his house with the 
offer of an antidosis, in order that he might thereby lose his 
right to pursue the action against his guardians), ko1 7rpoirov 

fxev Kariff^Krav tq.q dvpag t&v olKrjfiaTiov, wq avrwv rjdrj yiyvo- 

fiiyae Kara rvjv dvTldoffiv. "As though they were already 
coming into their possession." 
Lysias in Agorat. 135. 

oi h' avrwv wepLyevofievoi (those of them who survived) ral 
ciodevTEQ, ove ovtoq per diriicreivEV (was for killing) cj^wc, rj de. 
rvyji Kcu 6 SaijjKov ireptETroi^ffe, . . . rifiuivTai v<f vjuwV wq 
avdpsg dyadot ovteq. 

In Eurip. Ion, v. 1305, we have 

KP. EKTEIVCL S' OVTCL TToKkfUOV SofAOlQ iflOt^ 

And again, v. 1520, 

KP. EKTEIVQ. & a.KOV(T. 

K2N. I'i, ifiov t 
ov% ocl WvriaKEQ, 
where much difficulty has been found in explaining the use 
of the aorist ekteivcl, of a killing which had not actually taken 
place. Professor Hermann, in his note on Soph. Aj. 1105, 
thus explains the matter : "Nam in eo, quod quis voluit 
facere, nee tamen perfecit, quid aptius adhiberi tempus 
potest, quam, quod ab ea ipsa ratione nomen habet, imper- 
fectum ? At sicubi aoristum poni videas, cave pro imper- 
fecto eum poni putes, quod fieri plane non potest Sed 

each month (i.e. lunation) consisted of exactly twenty-nine days and 
a half. The actual calendar months were of thirty and twenty-nine 
days alternately. Manifestly, therefore, the thirtieth of each "full" 
month belonged, strictly speaking, as much to the succeeding month 
as to that with which it was ordinarily reckoned. In Thargelion the 
diaetetse were liable to give account of any mal-practice committed 
during their period of office. 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 5\ 

ponitnr ille jure suo. Differentia ha?c est. Imperfectum 
signiticat, voluisse aliquem aliquid facere, sed non perfecisse : 
aoristus autem perfecisse sed sine successu." At the risk of 
being thought presumptuous, I must say that to me there 
seems no difficulty whatever in the passages. ««rec#q is to 
be rendered literally, "I killed thee." Creusa is thinking 
only of that part of the action which depended upon herself, 
and so far as that went, she had killed Ion. It is plain that 
acceptance as well as offer is necessary to the consummation 
of a gift, yet we find no difficulty in such an expression as 
" I gave him the ring, but he refused to receive it." Nor 
should we, I suppose, be surprised to hear one who had been 
waylaid and left for dead, point out the man by whom he 
had been thus used, with the words, "there is my murderer." 
Exactly such an expression as this last, is the one of Mene- 
laus, upon which Professor Hermann's note is given. 

ME. cUata yap Tore evruy^ily, uniravTa jae ; 
TEY. vrdrarra; ceuov y t\~ac i\ tat £»$ OaiwV. 
ME. Qeoq yap ekoio^ei f.ie, nZct c' diyofiai. 

Of a very similar character, as it seems to me, is the de- 
claration of Demosthenes, in the speech against Meidias, 
p. 549. 

iyut [lev yap avTor, w avcpec 'Adipaloi, jo/u,u> avr6\eipa f.iov 
yeyevfjaOai tovtoiq toiq epyoig' teal tote /jlev rule Siorvcriotc rrjy 
7rapacrKEVi]i' t teal to <7<J/iu, Kai tu diaXtofxara vfiplfay, vvv tie 
tovtoiq o'tg ewoiei teal ctEirpaTTETO, ekeiyo. te Ka\ rd Xonrd xdvrOt 
rrjv tt6\iv, to yivoq, rrjv eVinpaj', Tag t\irica£. ei yap ev t u>v exe 
(jOv\ev<te xaTwpdwffEv, dxdvTiov av uxEffTEpijfuiiiv Eyco cut /ju)Ce 
Tatyijvui TrpoavxiipyEV OUCOt fiot. 

It is nothing uncommon, when, so far as the actor is con- 
cerned, the deed is done, to speak of it, with reference to 
the actor, as in fact done. A man might call himself the 
murderer of another before the termination of his victim's 
death-agonies. 

e2 



52 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

I now come to notice a confusion, which more commonly, 
I believe, than any other connected with the present subject, 
prevents the full meaning of Greek from being perceived. 
Boys at school learn to render rvVro/mi, tv-rt^ ruVrerai 
" I am struck, thou art struck, he is struck ;" it being en- 
tirely lost sight of that rvn-reTai is always an imperfect: " he 
is being struck," or " getting struck ;" whereas the form to 
which " he is struck" belongs, is far most usually a perfect, 
sometimes an aorist, but essentially incapable of being ever 
an imperfect. A moment's consideration will make this 
evident. In "the matter is demonstrated," we manifestly 
regard the demonstration as perfect and complete ; in order 
to denote its progress, the expression must be altered to 
" the matter is being demonstrated," or " the matter is 
demonstrating." The Greek equivalents to these two ex- 
pressions are Udeacrai ravra and tcivto. hiKwrai respectively ; 
but a boy who had learned from the common grammars, 
would almost certainly construe the latter, " these things are 
demonstrated," thus losing altogether the proper force of the 
word. A corresponding confusion is the consequence of 
translating TvirreaQai " to be struck" instead of" to be getting 
struck," and tvttto/jlevoq " struck," or " being struck," instead 
of " getting struck." The matter will be best understood 
from an examination of the following examples, which are 
brought together, be it observed, like all the others to be 
found in these pages, in the hope that the learner will not 
be content to gratify his indolence by slightly glancing over 
them, but will, by the bestowal of his careful attention upon 
them, obtain such an insight into, and familiarity with the 
doctrines they are meant to illustrate, as may be of practical 
benefit to him in all his future reading of Greek authors. 

In Aristoph. Equitt. 459, Cleon says, 
ravrl fid tt\v ArjfxrjTpd jjl ovk iXavdavev 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 53 

tekt aivojieva rd 7rpoy^ar', a'W jjTrtardiJirjy 
yofi^ovjiev avrd rcavra koX ko Wwjut v a. 
XO. n'1/j.oi, av & ovSev e£ d/ja^ovpyov XeyEig ; 
AA. ovkovv fj\ ev " Apyu ola trpdrTEt Xavddiet' 
7rp6({>a.(m> fiev 'Apyeiovg <pi\ovg r^iiv iroei, 
t^ip o' eke'i Ajcucefiaifioviois Zvyyiyverai, 
Kcii tclvt i(f> oiaiv ion av fi<pv <r to /j.e y a 
eywd'* inl ydp toIq Sece/jiIi'Dig xci\k e v et a t. 
Literally, (and though the English translation read heavily, 
it will enable us to perceive in the Greek its full meaning 
without any such heaviness) — 

These matters, by Demeter, were not escaping my notice in the 
carpentering of them, but I was being aware of the wedging of all of 
them, and the glueing. 

Chor. Ah me ! and are you saying nothing from the wain- 
wright's ? 

Blackpdddingseller. Not by any means is what he is doing at 
Argos escaping me. In pretext he is making Argives friends to us, 
while privately he is conferring with Lacedemonians. And with 
what object these things are forging I know ; with a view to the impri- 
soned they are being brasiered. 

Cleon asserts that while the steps were being taken he 
was aware of them : <: I knew that they wore wedging, that 
the wedging of them was going on," not merely " that they 
were wedged," and so of the other imperfects. We have 
the perfect dcfc/u'vocc because the meaning to be conveyed is 
11 thou who art imprisoned," not " those who are being im- 
prisoned — whom they are now putting into prison." This 
latter sense would have been expressed by cov/jlevoiq. So a 
few lines later, 

teal tuk Boiujtiov ravra ffuvrvpovfXEva. 
"And that this is churning (not 'churned') among the Boeotians." 
From inattention to the distinctive meaning of the imper- 
fect participle, this very passage is altogether enfeebled, and 
its sense perverted, in a translation of Aristophanes lately 
published : — 



54f THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 



By holy Ceres, I was well aware? 

That these intrigues were carpentered, and knew 

They were all nailed and glued. 

And I know for what purpose this is welded, 
'Tis to release the prisoners that 'tis forged! 

And this intrigue that's churned with the Boeotians. 

And in like manner Mr. Mitchell in his note, " rc/cratvo- 
jxeva ' fabricated/ yo^ovjueva f nailed,' KoWoifxeya e glued." 

So also in his edition of the Acharnians, v. 518, foil. 
koX tcdpra fievrdv evQzuq KadeiXKere 
rptaKoaiae vavg, r\v c* av r\ 7i6\ig 7r\£a 
6opv(3ov arparMrwv, irtpl rpirjpdp-^ov fiofJQ, 
fjiiardov SiSofievov, TLaWadiojv ^pvaovfxevwy, 
gtto&q trTEva^ovang, (Titiiov fiZTpovfievwv, 

to vewpwv <T av kutcewv 7r\arov/j.ev(i)v i 

tvXgUv \po(povvr(i)V daXafjiiuiv rpo770vfiev(t)v, k. r. A. 

Mr. Mitchell translates "gilded images of Pallas," "oars 
fitted with the oar-band," though the sense manifestly re- 
quires " with the gilding of images of Pallas," " the fitting 
of oar-bands." The translation before alluded to is here 
more accurate — 

" - the town 

Would have been full of bustle with the troops, 
Shoutings about the captains of the ships, 
Pay being issued, figure-heads regilding, 
Piazzas groaning, victuals measuring, 

The dockyard too would have been crammed with spars 
Cutting to oars, pins sounding, leathers putting 
To bottom-oars," &c. 

We have seen in two passages the force of the imperfect 
participle. On the contrary, in Equitt. 1163, when Cleon 

says— 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORxMS COMPARED. 55 

i$ov (pipu) toi ttjvSe fiaL,i(TKr]v iyui 

EC rdv oXwv t<Zv etc HvXov fxefx ay fie vr)i> : 

the perfect is exactly rendered by " kneaded from the bar- 
ley-meal from Pylus." So in the next line — 

AA. i yoj ()e fivariXas p tfiv ar 1X77 fxeva e 
V7TO rfjg 6eov, 

because the pvariXai are made already, not now in course of 

making. Similarly v. 960 — 

a'W ol y ifjol Xiyovaiv <Jc ap$at rre del 
\iopaq aVacz/c e art 0av u) fXEvov podoLQ, 

" crowned with roses ;" oTEtyavovpEvov would present to the 
fancy the actual putting on of the crown. 

lb. 857. 

w caifjLOPte firj tov Xeyorrog 'icrdi, futjc oijjfl/Jc 
ifiov 7TO0' Evprjaetv tyiXov ftiXriov' octtiq e\q ujv 
ETravtra rovg lvvu)fX0Tag, kui /x ov XeX^Oev ovtey 
ev TJj 7t6Xei Zvi'urTdfJEi'oy, dXX' evOecjq KEtcpaya. 

Mr. Mitchell translates " plotted ;" but Cleon's claims 
are much higher, — he declares that as soon as any thing is 
being plotted, and while it is still in progress and immature, 
he gives tongue upon it. With like inaccuracy the transla- 
tion before quoted from — 

11 I put down the conspiracy 

Alone, and I'm convinced on't 
There's not a party formed but I 
Bawl out that very instant." 

" There's not a party forming " is what Cleon says. In 
passing, it may be as well to remark that liravaa is " I put 
down, am in the habit of putting down," the Greek substi- 
tute for a present aoristick. I notice this, because the trans- 
lator tells us that he is not "aware that history informs us 
of any conspiracy, to which the demagogue could be sup- 
posed to allude." 



56 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

Thucyd. I. 7. 

"En he ical iv TO~ig fiapfidpoig eotiv dig vvv, /cat juaXtara rote 
'Affidvoig, 7rvy/j.r)g /cat 7raXrig ddXa Tiderai /cat $ie£(*) a \ii v o t 

TOVTO SpOJffl. 

"belted;" hafavvv/jievoi would be "while they are being 
belted, while the belting is going on." 

lb. VII. 53. The Athenian fleet was getting the worse of 
the conflict in the harbour of Syracuse — 

o $e TvXnnroQ opuiv rag vavg rwv TroXe/jiiwv v i k cofxe v a g /cat 
e£w rCiV aravpiOfjiciTOJv /cat tov iavToHv (rrpaTOTridov /car a(f>£po jie- 
v a g — 7rajOe/3o?f0£i, /c. r. X. 

The meaning would not be at all given by translating 
" Gylippus seeing the enemies' ships defeated and carried 
down," &c. Thucydides intends to say that he saw them 
getting defeated, and took measures to ensure that the defeat 
then in progress before his eyes should be matured and con- 
summated. Similarly in Equitt. 1299 — 

rd 3' (bra y av aov vrj At" kl^i^ET dvvvTO 
wenrep (TKiadeiov /cat 7raXtv ^vvrjyero. 

The use of the imperfect puts the action spoken of dra- 
matically before the hearer's eye : e< would be opening and 
closing again just like an umbrella." Where Mr. Mitchell, 
as usual, " aV ik^erapwro were wont to be expanded." 

Demosth. in Meid. 519. 

Xoyiov Ka\ Xoidopiag yiyvop,ivrjg /cat KartfyopovvTog tov jxev ajo- 
'Xpvrog tG)v ETnji£\r]Tuv Trig tyvXrjg, tCHv V eVtjugX^rwv tov apj^ovrog, 
TrapeXdiov vTczayp\xr\v iyu> yopv\yy\aziv ideXovrrjg, /cat kXtj pov ue- 
vtiiv irpCJTog alpeladai tov avXrjTrjv 'iXaypv. 

"when the appointments were being determined by lot." 

lb. 

oaa fiev toIvvv . . . ^Vw'^X^ere . . . rj raXXa 7raV0' oaa roiavra, 
tdau), ov yap dyvooi) tovO' otl rw ETnqpeaclofxey'w tot ifio\ /cat 
v /3pt£o ae vo) ty\v avTijv 6pyr]v e/caorov tovtwv, 7]V7rep aXX' otlovv 
tCJv deivoTaTCJv, TrapiaTr)' v/jliv Se TO~ig dXXoig, toIq ei;a> tov npdy- 
fiaTog ovaiv ovk av 'laojg a£ta ravra /ca0' aura dytavog (paveir). 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 51 

This is one of the many passages in which to translate 
with complete accuracy is very difficult, though, if we are 
familiar with the subject, there is no difficulty at all in per- 
ceiving the exact force of the original. An English speaker 
would hardly have said anything but " to me who was then 
outraged." In the Greek, however, the time during which 
the outrage was actually going on is presented to the mind ; 

rw eTrrfpea^Ofievi) tot e/iol teat vftpt^o/jiera) is " to me who Was 

then being annoyed and outraged, suffering under annoy- 
ance and outrage." 

The next passage, from p. 523 of the same speech, con- 
tains, in its interchange of imperfects and aorists, a good ex- 
emplification of what has been before observed respecting 
the nature of these tenses, as well as of our immediate sub- 
ject. 

iyui ce ev /ueV ekeIvo ev olhi, ra) vpuc <$£ eicerat XPV* ^ Tl ei A* 7 ) 
TrpovftaXofiriv uvtov, a\\A' e*8ura£oftifV| ovvavriog i)kev dv evOug pot 
Xoyog, ujq ei-rrep r}\> ti tovtvjv d\r)dlg, npofidXXEffdai pE i£et t kui Trap* 
avTa. TcuiKr/jaTa tijv Ti^topiuv 7roiela6at' 6 ti yap \opog r\v rrjg 
-rroXeivg, ij te E<r6r]g rijg eopTrjc EVEtca ndaa 7r a p e a k e va£ero, iyoi 

TE 6 TTETTOvOtOC T(IVT(X \Opi)yog Iff. • • • TO.VT EV 01$ OTl TTO.VT O.V 

tAeytr ovrog tote. 

" But this one thing /know well — and you ought to know it too 

that if I had not moved for a resolution against him, but were en- 
gaged in a private suit with him, the contrary argument would have 
been at me directly, that if anything of this were true, I ought to 
have been for moving [or " have proceeded to move"] for a resolu- 
tion against him, and making the punishment follow side by side with 
the crimes, for both the chorus was the state's, and the dresses were 
all preparing on account of the festival, and I who had been treated 
thus was choregus: all this, I well know, the defendant would in that 
case have been for telling you." 

Buttmann remarks upon TrapEOKEvd^ETo — " Recte habet im- 
perf. intelligitur enim, * cum iste corrumperet earn:' quod 
factum est in ipsa aurificis officina\" 



58 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES, 

lb. 532. 

ol Toivvv xopol ndvTEQ ol yiyvofAEvoi ical ol \opr\yo\ drjXov on rag 
ixev r/jue'joae EKdvag dg avvepypniQa eVi tov dyiova Kara rag pav- 
reiaQ ravrag, vtteq v/iiov iffre^avuifieda ofAoiojg 6 re jueXXwv 
viKav, /cat 6 TrdvTiov vorarog yevrjcreadaf tyjv It t&v eTriVLKtiov, 
virtp avrov tot rjdr) err e <p av ovrai 6 vuciov. 

Upon gVr£0av(J/i£0a Buttmann remarks — " Reposui hoc ex 
codd. Bekk. omnibus pro vulgato arEcpavov^Eda. Coronati, 
coronas gerentes (eVre^avw/ieVoi) prodibant chori : contra 
recte mox dicitur oTEtyavovoBai 6 vikQ>v in epinieiis, ubi Prae- 
sens" (i.e. the imperfect present) "ipsam coronam impo- 
nendi sollemnitatem indicat." 

So a few lines later we have — 

Tivog eveko. ; OTT(og fj.rj tov i ar £(j>av oj fie vov /cat \Eirovp- 
yovvra to. rfj 0£w Tavrrjv rrjv -q^iEpav Kakrj ^r^S' i7rr}p£d£rf fir]^ 
v{3pi£,r) firjhlg e^EKiTrfiEg. 

" Crowned and in the discharge of publick duties." 

In p. 538 of the same oration is a good instance of the 
dramatick effect of a passive imperfect in the Greek, which 
is almost entirely unrepresentable in our own language : 

iyoj 3' vtc i^dpov, vqcpovrog, £W0£v, vfipEi /cat ovk o'ivu tovto 

TTOLOVVTOg, EVCLVTIOV TTOXKCJV KCU ^EVOJV /Cat IToXlT&V, vj3pi£6fjt,r}l' 1 

k. r. X. 

" was being outraged." For an English speaker nothing but 
an aorist would be admissible, conveying merely the bare 
fact that " I was outraged ;" but it is not the less requisite 
to note such imperfects, if we wish to perceive the full mean- 
ing of the Greek which we have before us. 

lb. 539. (Demosthenes is telling the dicasts what took 
place when he was about to bring the action against his 
guardians) — 

TOTE JJLOl flE\\0Vff<jJV eIgIEVCII TIjJV })lKb)V Eig tf/jLEpCU' MfflTEpEl TETOp- 

tk\v fj 7rifi7TTr)v, EiaEwrjhriaay d$£\(f)6g 6 tovtov k<u oxiTog Eig rrjv 
ohiav dvTididovTEg (with an offer of antidosis) Tpir}papyj.av. tov~ 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 59 

vofia liev Srj xdpEcrx^v ekeivoc kul i)v 6 dvTihiZovg, QpaavXoxoQ' r< * 
ce spya navTa r)v car a7r par to iiev a V7TO tovtov, k. t.X. 
" all that was done was being done by the defendant — it 
was the defendant who was doing it," " was done by the 
defendant," would be KaTairEirpayLiEva or Ka-axpaxdEvra. 

The following passage contains several examples of the 
manner in which, in Greek narration, how one tense and now 
another is employed, as occasion may require, and of the 
advantage obtained by the transition. The speaker is giv- 
ing an account of the tricks played by a wife who had been 
false to him. 

Lysias de eaede Eratosthenis, 92. 

UpioTOV iiev ovv u) avcpEQ, (hi yap kcu to.v& vjjliv ci^ytjaaffdai,) 
oIkiCiov iari /not SiirXovv, tea e\ov rd civio to'iq kutlj, Kara rrjv 
yvvatKiov'iTiv *cat Kara Ttjv dvtpwv'iTiv. cVaa/ ce to rraiciov iyivETo 
ij/itv, r\ \xr\rr\p avro iQj)\aL,Ev' Iva le. Lit), onoTE XovEadai ceoi, av 
Ivvev)} Kurd r//g tcXifjatcor KUTajiaivovaa, iyw liev avio ZinrVfATfy, at 
ci yvvaiKEQ K'a'rw. Kat ovrug 7)0/ avvEiOicrLiEiGv ?/r, wore TroWdictQ 
rj yvvt] aTrrjEL tcdru) KaQtvC^aovaa wg to "xcuciov, Iva rop titOov 
avTu> ticJ) kcu lit) fiocj. Ktti tuvtu ttoXvv yjwvov ovrcoc iyivETo, kcu 
iyio ovcettote v7ru)7rTEvaa' a'W ovtivq ijXidiioc; CiEKEifjrjv. cjote yiLT\v 
ti)i> Efxavrov yvvatro Tratrw* <ju)<ppuvEOTd-T)v e\vcu tiZv ev r// 7ro\£t. 
Upo'iovTog Se tov xpovov, J avcpEc, i]kov iiev ciTrpcaCOKijrijjQ e's dypov, 
lieth ~vov to natciov ip6a t /cat icvaKoXaivEv viro rrjc 0tpa- 

TraivriQ E7riTi)dEc Xvwou lie iuv, Ira tuvtci wwS, Kal iyio Trjv yv\ oiku 
aVteVat ekeXevov, kiu Covrcu rip TratCtt^ tov titOov 'iva Travar)TaL 
KXa'iov. i] ce to iiev irptJTOv ovk tJOeXev, ETTEiCrj Ce iyio tJoyti^oyuj/v, 
*.at ekeXevov avrrjv aVteVat, k. r. X. 

The learner, who has gone through the preceding pages 
with due attention, will not need that I should point out to 
him how much the full perception of the speaker's meaning 
is aided by observing the transitions from one class of ten- 
ses to another, and the dramatick effect with which the Greek 
imperfects make it so easy to give the narrative. Every 
chapter of Thucydides will supply similar instances in 



60 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

abundance. I take almost the first at which the book opens 
for an example: — 
VII. 47. 

ol Si t<ov 'Adrjvaiiov arparriyoi iv tovtu ifiovXevovro ttqoq te rrjv 
y£y£vv\\i£vr\v Zvfi(f>opav rac irpog rrjv -rrapovaav iv rw ffrparoxE^io 
Kara iravra dppwariav. tolq te yap ETn-)(Eipr}fxaaLv ioipojv ov Karop- 
Bovvteq fcoti rove orpanwrae d^QofievovQ rrj fiovy. vofff re yap iine- 
£ovro tear a'ju^oVfpa, rrjg te uipag rov iviavTov ravT7\q ov(tt)q, iv jj 
dadevovffiv dv0pw7roi /xa'Xtora, kui to ^wpiov dfxa iv J iarpaToirE- 
BevovTOf iXiofog Kcii %a\£7roV rjv' rd re aXXa on dveXinaTa avrolg 
i(paiv£T0. tS ovv Arjfxoadivei ovk e'co/cei en ^(prjvai fiivEiv> k. t. X. 

Before quitting the subject, I cannot help offering, by- 
way of appendix, a few remarks on the extraordinary and 
mischievous absurdity, the curiosa infelicitas of the system, 
or rather no-system, of tense-nomenclature adopted in our 
Greek grammars. 

Since the distinction between education and instruction, 
that is, between framing the mind and filling it, between 
furnishing food and supplying power well to digest and 
assimilate the same, between putting arms into a man's 
hand and imparting to him strength to wield them, and 
skill how to wield them, and judgment when to wield them ; 
since this so important distinction has begun to be recog- 
nised, and we have perceived that useful knowledge is one 
thing, and mental cultivation quite another, the defenders 
of our old English grammar-school system have felt it 
incumbent upon them to show its excellence by pointing 
out how it trains, as well as what it communicates, to suggest 
to their opponents that the proper end of schooling is not 
so much work as faculty of working, less 'ipya than e&tg, and 
that it would be unreasonable to object to the cooper that his 
apprentice had as yet produced no casks, nor was work- 
ing upon cask- wood, if the tyro were exercising his hand 
upon such wood and in such a way as experience had 
shown best fitted to render him an able practitioner 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 61 

when the time of trial should come. Of the grammar- 
school's other benefits in this kind, I am not called 
upon to speak ; but it will not be foreign to my purpose 
to consider how it tends, or at least might tend, to produce 
in its disciples clearness of thought and accuracy of lan- 
guage, by familiarizing them to the need and the employ- 
ment of strictly defined terms, by means of the technical 
nomenclature of their grammar. 

No one can, at least upon a moment's consideration, be 
unaware of the loose inaccurate way in which many terms, 
bearing important meanings and commonly enough in use, 
are continually employed. Take the word " liberty," for in- 
stance. " Every brutal mob," writes Coleridge, " assembled 
on some drunken St. Monday of faction, is ■ the People 9 
forsooth, and now each leprous ragamuffin, like a circle in 
geometry, is at once one and all, and calls his own brutal 
self ■ us the people. ,,: Hardly any word would be more 
common in the mouth of some such " leprous ragamuffin," 
than this one of " liberty," and its sound from such a 
mouth is not greatly different from that which it bears when 
uttered by the great poet and philosopher himself, in those 
noble lines which I trust I may be forgiven for quoting : 

" Ye clouds ! that far above me float and pause, 

Whose pathless march no mortal may control ! 

Ye ocean waves ! that, wheresoe'er ye roll, 
Yield homage only to eternal laws ! 
Ye woods ! that listen to the night-birds singing, 

Midway the smooth and perilous slope reclined, 
Save when your own imperious branches swinging, 

Have made a solemn music of the wind ! 
Where, like a man beloved of God, 
Through glooms which never woodman trod, 

How oft, pursuing fancies holy, 
My moonlight way o'er flowering weeds I wound, 

Inspired, beyond the guess of folly, 
By each rude shape and wild unconquerable sound ! 



62 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

O ye loud waves ! and O ye forests high ! 

And O ye clouds that far above me soared ! 
Thou rising sun ! thou blue rejoicing sky ! 

Yea, every thing that is and will be free ! 

Bear witness for me, wheresoe'er ye be, 

With what deep worship I have still adored 
The spirit of divinest liberty." 

The word " liberty" sounds the same, or much like the 
same, in its two utterances, but how vastly different are 
the notions, the things, the aggregate of thoughts and 
associations of which in the one and in the other it is the 
representative and memorandum. And so for each of us, 
when we speak or think of liberty, the word's meaning varies 
with the varying amount of thoughts and feelings which in 
the case of each it represents and recalls. And similar 
observations will manifestly apply to a thousand words 
more, — such is the laxity of usage prevalent in " the 
market-place." On the other hand, if this laxity be not 
corrected, and its effect upon minds habituated thereto 
counteracted, all stable knowledge, all fixed opinion, all 
firmly-based, duly-compacted fabrick of science, all sure 
grasp of truth, becomes impossible. For if words give not 
substance to thought, they give it form and consistence ; it 
might perhaps hardly be too much to say, that by bestowing 
upon it an outline, they make it an object for the mental 
eye: they are necessary, not only that we may be able 
to communicate our thoughts to others, but also that we 
may have the power, perhaps even of contemplating them, 
certainly of preserving, recalling, and applying them our- 
selves. Frost is no constituent of water, nor any precondition 
of its existence; yet without frost the edifice of the Northern 
Sovereign's water-palace could never have been reared. But 
words being thus, so to speak, the forms by the connection 
and accumulation of which the outline of the truth-fabrick — 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 63 

or at least of that copy thereof which for us is the fabrick 
itself— is constituted, manifestly, if the structure is to be 
fixed and permanent, these forms must be so too. That 
must needs itself be fluctuating, which is built up out of 
fluctuating materials. Hence it is that philosophy — at least 
since the era of Socrates — has ever striven to fix the value of 
terms, as an indispensable prerequisite to the attainment 
(or at any rate the preservation) of clearness of conception, 
and thereafter of exactness of argument, and of truth and 
certainty of result. And in each particular science the 
first thing presented to the learner is a nomenclature, a col- 
lection of technical terms or definitions, to be acquainted 
with which is as necessary a preliminary to knowledge of 
the subject in question, as to have learned the powers of the 
alphabetical characters is to skill in reading. And this 
nomenclature includes all terms, the application of which 
can admit of any doubt or variation. Thus the habits of 
the schools and of the market-place are in direct contrast 
the one to the other. In the schools each word has its 
exact value, is stamped accordingly, and for just so much 
worth passes current ; but in the market-place values are 
estimated in sheep and oxen, like the arms of Glaucus and 
Diomedes ; and though a pound-weight weighs a pound in 
every balance, five head of fat cattle fed by A, are not of 
precisely the same worth as the like number from the 
scanty pasturage of B. Or, to change the illustration, we 
may say that in the market-place words are as snow-balls, 
the form and mass whereof is modified by the squeeze of the 
hurler's fingers ; whereas in the schools they are like the 
leaden spheres piled up in artillery-yards, with forms 
determined from the mould, and weights pre-appointed and 
marked upon their surfaces. " It is worth observing,'* 
says the Archbishop of Dublin, " that the words whose 



64 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

ambiguity is most frequently overlooked, and is productive 
of the greatest amount of confusion of thought and fallacy, 
are among the commonest, and are those of whose meaning 
the generality consider there is least room to doubt. It is 
indeed from those very circumstances that the danger 
arises : words in very common use are both the most liable, 
from the looseness of ordinary discourse, to slide from one 
sense into another, and also the least likely to have that 
ambiguity suspected. Familiar acquaintance is perpetually 
mistaken for accurate knowledge" Is it then of no im- 
portance that in the market-place also the usage of words 
should be precise rather than fluctuating ? Or is it not in 
the wide debateable country of indistinct thought and inde- 
terminate language, wherein all of us perhaps have no 
inconsiderable intellectual property, while for very many 
their whole possessions seem to be therein situate, that 
there spring up the rich crops of errors, fallacies, misunder- 
standings, disputes, — in a word those mischiefs and ab- 
surdities, both in argument and act, innumerable, that are 
daily occasioning so much vain and endless disturbance in 
the world around us? 

Since then the usage of the market-place is so lax, and 
that which the interests of truth require so rigid, and truth 
itself so important, it follows that no system of education 
can be complete without an element of counteraction to the 
ill effects of the loose talking of daily life. And as the 
mode wherein these ill effects are produced consists in the 
practice of using words inaccurately, arising out of the habit 
of hearing them so used by others, the remedy will ob- 
viously be to attempt to produce a contrary practice by the 
instrumentality of an opposite habit. And how is this 
habit to be generated, unless by employing the learner on 
some subject wherein he may find it prevalent ? Now such 



GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 65 

subjects are the sciences. The collateral advantages of the 
study of grammar, which among these give it a right to be 
preferred, it is no part of my present business to consider. 
It will be sufficient to observe that of no other science are 
the rules and principles of so continually recurring appli- 
cation and utility. Tn the reading of ancient authors the 
technical terms of grammar are in the learner's daily em- 
ployment, and the notions represented by them are con- 
tinually occurring in the most varied relations to one another, 
all which relations it is requisite distinctly to perceive* 
before the author's meaning can be fully apprehended. The 
mental operations gone through are so many lessons in 
accurate thinking, and the results of these are fixed, and, so 
to speak, embodied by the terminology employed. It re- 
mains to enquire on what principles such a terminology 
should be constructed. 

To enter fully into this investigation is as much beside 
our present purpose, as it would probably prove beyond the 
writer's powers. Thus much seems plain. The object for 
which all words are formed is, as I before observed, that we 
may be able to communicate thought to others, and to 
distinguish, preserve, and recall it ourselves; in philosophi- 
cal language, to make the subjective objective, and objective 
for the subject itself as well as for the rest. The best 
words therefore are those which, being of convenient form, 
are most readily apprehended and most easily retained. 
These, in the case which we have now to consider — the 
invention of technical terms to aid in the learning of 
a science — will be either words newly introduced but self- 
explanatory, as made up of previously understood elements ; 
or old words, whether adopted entire or slightly modified, 
but, at all events, with their use and application strictly 
laid down. Such words are best, because, being at once, 

F 



66 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

to a certain extent at least, intelligible, they aid the ap- 
prehension, and still more the recollecting power, in their 
endeavours rightly to seize and to retain the conceptions 
which the terms are to convey. But in proportion to the 
advantage of a right nomenclature is the evil of one false or 
faulty, and in no relation of a science would this evil be 
more manifest than in its office of training the learner to an 
accurate use of language. 

Now to turn to the actual tense-nomenclature of our Greek 
grammars. Was ever anything more confused and confus- 
ing ? We find a number of tenses possessing, of course, 
different powers, and we hope from the name of each to get 
some insight into what these powers respectively may be, — 
the rather, as most of their names have a sound of familia- 
rity. We examine the classification more closely. — A first 
principle of classificatory nomenclature surely is, that the 
specifick names shall involve a real distinction ; that every 
one shall, at least as regards the present subject, and in the 
same degree of existence, exclude every other. — The distinc- 
tive names bestowed on the first and second tenses are — 
Present and Imperfect. What then, is there any opposition 
between these two names ; or may not an action spoken of be 
present and imperfect too ? The first tense, it appears, be- 
longs to present time. And so, for aught its name implies, 
may the second, or to past or future time, either. From 
the nomenclature hitherto noticed, we learn that there is a 
two-fold distinction of indicative forms, according as the 
actions to which they refer are perfect or imperfect, and 
belong to time past, present, or future. Whether, however, 
the " Present " be a present-perfect, or present-imperfect, 
and whether the " Imperfect " be an imperfect-present, an 
imperfect-past, or an imperfect-future,— of this the nomen- 
clature tells us nothing. Third in order, — to the still greater 






GREEK AND ENGLISH FORMS COMPARED. 67 

complication of the whole matter, — comes the " Aorist." It 
appears, then, that the verb-classification contemplates 
actions either simply as occurrences, or as occurrences in 
progress, or as occurrences complete and perfect. Is 
" the Present " an imperfect, a perfect, or an aorist ? Is 
"the Imperfect" a present, a past, or a future? And is 
1 * the Aorist" a present, past, or future aoristick? So of 
" the Perfect," which we next meet with. Is it present-perfect, 
past-perfect, or future-perfect? Now comes a tense, with 
a mystical denomination, implying that its aidance will be 
at hand for us whensoever our needs ask a form for the 
telling of actions more than perfect. Wherefrom passing 
with admiration and due acknowledgments, but, at the same 
time, some not unnatural impression that we shall never re- 
quire the proffered good offices, we arrive finally at a future, 
whether perfect, imperfect, or aoristick, of course undeter- 
mined. And so concludes the indicative, after presenting 
us with such a confused jumble of nomenclature as I suppose 
can hardly be paralleled — I am sure it cannot be surpassed — 
elsewhere. It would have been ten thousand times better and 
more useful to have called the first tense " Zenith," the 
second " Nadir," the third " Radius Vector," and so on. 
These names would, to be sure, have done nothing to aid 
our apprehension, but neither, on the other hand, would 
they have done anything to confuse it ; and definitions might 
probably have been attached to each which would have set 
the matter right. The practical effect of the present state of 
things, in at least eight cases out of ten, is just this:— A boy 
has a sort of confused notion that "perfect," "imperfect," 
and " aorist" are, in grammar, pretty nearly synonymous, all 
meaning " past ;" plusquamperfectum is of course as sig- 
nificant as Abracadabra, though, to be sure, most boys, in 
their exceeding familiarity with the sound, entertain pro- 

f2 



68 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

bably no suspicion that they have absolutely no notion 
whatever of the thing signified ; and, for the rest, present 
and future seem intelligible words enough, and are treated 
accordingly. And so much for the manner in which dis- 
tinctness of thought, and accuracy in the use of language, 
are promoted by the tense-nomenclature of which I have 
been speaking. As for its effect upon the full perception of 
the meaning of Greek, the learner who has gone through the 
foregoing pages with due energy and laboriousness, and has 
not been content cursorily to pass over them, to " skip and 
go on," when he came to an example hard to construe, and, 
when his memory on some preceding point had failed him, 
to spare his sloth the trouble of turning back to it, — such a 
learner needs not any remarks here upon that part of the 
matter. For myself, after having been for some years aware 
of the true state of the case, it was the drawing up of these 
papers which first enabled me readily and at once, in reading 
a passage of Greek, to receive the full force of its verbal 
forms. That a failure so to receive is the reverse of uncom- 
mon, appears sufficiently from the instances already noticed, 
in which some very respectable scholars have so made 
failure, and that too in passages where the sense is thereby 
very materially affected. A fortiori, it may be concluded 
that they have done so in very many passages, wherein to 
mark the exact verbal force is less absolutely requisite ; and 
a fortiori again, that the great mass of boys at school, and, 
in general, of that class of learners for whose benefit these 
pages are designed, do so continually, 



NOTE. 69 



Note on a use of the Past-imperfect. 

The ancient artists were in the habit of inscribing their 
works with irolti, e.g. fteihiag i-roiei — UoXvkXeitov iiroUt* How 
certainly would most learners consider the word as entirely 
equivalent to eVcuV £ , and translate accordingly. And with 
what correctness they would so translate, will appear by the 
following passage from Harris: — 

" Again, we are told by Pliny (whose authority likewise is 
confirmed by many gems and marbles still extant) that the 
ancient painters and sculptors, when they fixed their names to 
their works, did it pendenti titulo, in a suspensive kind of in- 
scription, and employed for that purpose the tense [the past- 
imperfect] here mentioned. It was 'ATtW^g etzoiei, Apelles 
faciebat, UuXvkXeitoq mice, Polycletus faciebat, and never 
EiroiqaE or fecit. By this they imagined that they avoided the 
show of arrogance, and had in case of censure an apology (as it 
were) prepared, since it appeared from the work itself that it 
was once indeed hi hand, but no pretension that it was ever 
finished." — Hermes i. 7. 

And in a note he adds — " The first printers (who were 
most of them scholars and critics), in imitation of the ancient 
artists, used the same tense. Excudebat H. Stephanas. 
Excudebat Gail. Morelius, AbsolvebatJoan. Benenatus." 

Pliny's words, as referred to by Harris, are (he is speaking 
of the title of his book) :— 

" Me non pcenitet nullum festiviorem excogitasse titulum ; et 
ne videar Graecos in totum insectari, ex illis nos velim intelligi 
pingendi fingendique conditoribus, quos in his libellis invenies 
absoluta opera, et ilia quoque, quse mirando non satiamur, pen- 
denti titulo inscripsisse, ut apelles faciebat, aut polycle- 
tus, tanquam inchoata semper arte et imperfecta, ut contra 
judiciorum varietates superesset artifici regressus ad veniam, 



1 



70 THE POWERS OF THE GREEK TENSES. 

velut emendaturo quidquid desideraretur, si non esset intercep- 
ts. Quare plenum verecundise illud est, quod omnia opera 
tanquara novissima inscripsere, et tanquam singulis fato adempti. 
Tria, nonamplius, ut opinor, absolute traduntur inscripta: ille 
fecit ; quo apparuit summam artis securitatem auctori suo 
placuisse, et ob id in magna invidia fuere omnia." — Plin. Nat. 
Hist. i. 20. 

I have already in the preface disclaimed for a very large 
part of the doctrine put forth in the foregoing paper all pre- 
tension to originality. The classification, however, of the 
tenses there given so much resembles that of Harris in the 
first book of his " Hermes/' as to demand a special acknow- 
ledgment, had the one been adopted from the other. The 
fact is, that when the proof-sheet of the classification above 
given was corrected, I had never read a line of the " Her- 
mes." 

I find from Priscian, as quoted by Harris, that the name 
" present-perfect" is as old as the time of the Stoicks: — 

" Sciendum tamen quod Romani pr^terito perfecto non 
solum in re modo completa utuntur, (in quo vim habet ejus, qui 
apud Grsecos TrapaKEifievog vocatur, quern Stoici TEAEION 
ENEETOTA nominaverunt,) sed etiam pro dopiffrov accipitur, 
etc." — Prisc lib. viii. 



THF. 



ATTICK USAGE OF THE PARTICLE "an. 



Introduction. — The force of a% in general.* 
In the study of a language, there is no greater difficulty 
than to perceive thoroughly, and set forth distinctly, the full 
force and import of its particles. Perceptions such as these, 
resulting for the most part from obscure and vague notices, 
cannot, without the greatest effort, be reduced to clear and 
definite conceptions: and when we imagine ourselves to 
have accomplished the task, we often find our meanings 
rather evaporated than expressed ; — instead of having a 

* This chapter is little more than a translation, and, in part, re- 
arrangement of a section of Professor Hermann's treatise " De 
Particula «"." It was originally my intention merely to have ren- 
dered, on a similar plan, the remainder of that work ; and I have in 
fact, with the exception of the book on the usage of *» with the 
indicative, derived very considerable assistance from it. In his 
treatment of that part of the subject which I have excepted in 
acknowledging my obligations to him, Professor Hermann's doctrine 
appears to me very confused in its arrangement, and moreover 
materially and extensively vitiated, by the gross oversight of regard- 
ing the denial of the consequent of a conditional proposition, as 
following necessarily upon the denial of its antecedent. 



72 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

character of reality and distinctness impressed upon them, 
by the process to which they have been subjected, they seem 
to be evanished and lost in its operation, as though, belong- 
ing to the sphere of the sense and the feeling, they refused 
to be grasped by the understanding, or subjected to its laws. 
Moreover, in most of the particles, so various is the prin- 
ciple of application, so complicated the rule of usage, that, 
unfold it with what care you will, you will hardly find any 
thing which will suit all and every passage alike. And 
what adds to the difficulty is, that when we have recourse to 
what in these subjects is our surest resource, the comparison 
of other tongues, we can never find particles so exactly 
corresponding as not to convey too little or too much, or at 
least to possess such shades and differences of meaning, as 
render them no less apt to lead into error, than they are 
useful in assisting explanation. These observations apply 
with more than ordinary pertinency to the Greek aV and k<-V, 
which, besides that they have no precise equivalents in any 
language with which I am acquainted, are moreover, so 
slightly differenced from certain other particles in that to 
which they belong, as to make it no easy matter to discern 
what the difference is. However, seeing that enquiries such 
as the present can be successfully conducted only by the 
twofold process — of first, by long and accurate perusal of 
the ancients becoming possessed of that indescribable tact, 
that instinctive sense of the force and usage of the particles, 
which daily use gives in our vernacular tongue ; and next, of 
endeavouring to draw out these obscure notions into the 
light and distinctness of definite conceptions, the latter part 
alone belonging to the province of the teacher, — I shall 
make the attempt, however arduous, and have only to beg 
my readers not to shrink from accompanying me in the en- 
deavour to find a track amid the darkness and perplexities 
of this intellectual jungle. 



INTRODUCTION. 73 

The four particles civ (and kev), "iowq, ttov, ri have the 
same general force, but in different degrees, and with diffe- 
rent relations. They agree in this^ that all weaken the 
predication in which they occur, render it I. e. less positive, 
distinct, and decisive ; introduce a shade, more or less deep, 
of uncertainty into it. Now uncertainty may be introduced 
into a predication, 

I. In four degrees ; for a predication may be spoken of as 

(1) Possibly true : " it may be so, but I have no ground 
whatever for thinking that it is so rather than that it is not 
so" — bare possibility, a predication with uncertainty in the 
highest degree. 

(2) Contingently true : " if the sky be red to-night, we 
shall have a fine day to-morrow" — (that to-morrow will be 
fine is the predication). 

(3) Very likely true : " I am inclined to think it will be 
a fine day to-morrow." 

(4) With many probabilities for its truth : " the sky is 
red to-night, and so we may look for it's being fine to- 
morrow." 

Obs. In the Greek, (3), for instance, would have its full 
force given by the indicative tense, " it will be a fine day," 
united to the proper particle; and in like manner (4) and 
the rest. 

(II.) With two relations. 

[a) Subjective; with relation to the person speaking, the 
subject of the thought expressed by the predication. 

(b) Objective ; with relation to the thing spoken of, the 
object of the same thought. 

(1) and (3) will be included by (a), and (2) and (4) by 
(b) ; for when I speak of any predication as (1) barely pos- 
sible, or (3) as likely, the uncertainty is represented as 
subjective, as existing in my own thoughts and opinion ;— 



74- THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE CLV. 

but when I speak of a thing (2) as contingently true, or (4) 
as with many probabilities for its truth,— -the condition and 
the probabilities, in the mention of which the introduction 
of uncertainty into the predication consists, are spoken of as 
matters, not of my own mind and thoughts, parts of the 
thinking subject me, but as something objective and inde- 
pendent, something existing in external nature. To put 
the same thing in other words, when I say " it possibly may 
be," or " very likely it is," uncertainty is denoted in both 
expressions, but denoted only with relation to myself, as my 
opinion, i.e. subjectively. But when I say " it would be if," 
or " it will surely be because," uncertainty is denoted still, 
but not denoted merely as my view, but in connexion with 
and in relation to something external, outward, objective, as 
the condition or probable cause. 

A tabular summary of the preceding, with the particles 
proper to each case, may be given thus : 

Uncertainty intro- f ,. . . ( possibly true — by iVajg. 

duced into a pre- | SUD J ectlve > as \ ve ry likely true—by *rou. 

dication may be^ C contingently true — by av or keu. 

represented with | objective, as < with many probabilities for its 

relation (. ( truth — by t&. 

The force of each expression will be yet more evident 
by considering the one opposed to it. If we desire to 
assure of the truth of some predication a man whose doubt 
and uncertainty have been expressed by 'Lmq, we use the 
simple verb without any addition — non solum potest esse, 
we say to him, sed est. If his doubt were expressed by 
nov, we say — non solum verisimile est sed verum est (5 rav0' 
ovtcjq exeO- If by av, we say — non solum conditione aliqud 
sed omnino (Trdvrwg). If by re, our assertion to the con- 
trary is — non solum probabile et consentaneum est, sed 
necessarium (dvayKaitog rav& ovTojg cx £l )» " there is not 
only good reason to think it, but it cannot be otherwise." 



INTRODUCTION. 75 

I will add from Homer a twofold illustration, giving first 
a line which admits any of these particles, showing at the 
same time how the sense varies with their interchange; and 
next, one which will admit none of them except that 
actually found. First, then, we find 

avv te cv tpypfJLEVh), kcu 'laioe irpo 6 rov er6i)GW t 

" When two go together, one may see more than another." 
He who says this asserts the bare possibility " it may be 
so ;" if he asserted that it actually was so, he would omit 
the to-wc- Were the line 

avv TE Cv ipxofxevu), K(lt ttov Tzpo 6 TOV EVOY\aEV y 

the meaning would be, " when two go, &c, perhaps, like 
enough, one sees more, etc." And the opposite assertion 
would be 17 ctj irpo 0, k.t.\. "undoubtedly, assuredly one 
sees, etc." If we read 

(TVV TE CV Kill KEY ~p(J () TOV E101]<JEV, 

we should translate, " when two go together, if so be, 
if circumstances so happen, one sees more than an- 
other," opposed to " absolutely, without limitation, <?7r\w£." 
Lastly 

( - h , - , I 

aw TE LV KOI TE TTpO O TOV EVOIjaEV 

would be, M we must surely think that when etc." in which 
the speaker gives the assertion as a probable inference, the 
opposite being dyaygaUfc *po 6, k.t.X. " it follows necessarily 
that, etc." 

Next, in the Odyssey a. 197, to Telemachus' desponding 
persuasion of his father's death, Pallas replies — 
d\V f'n ttov £wo<; KarEpvKETai Evpii ttovtu, 
expressing thereby her own opinion of the likelihood that 
Ulysses still survives. To have said 'iawg would have been 
small consolation; for, as no tidings had come of his father's 
death, Telemachus needed not to be told that there was 



7b* THE ATTiCK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

a bare possibility of his being alive To have said re, 
would have implied that there were strong probabilities for 
it, which would have been contrary to the fact. Least of 
all could Key have been employed, which would convey 
merely the obvious fact, that " if circumstances have been 
such as to save him, Ulysses is safe." She uses therefore 
the only suitable form, that viz. with the subjective particle 
ttov ; she has no particular grounds for hope to urge, but 
by an expression of cheerful and hopeful feeling herself she 
seeks to awaken a sympathetick cheerfulness and hope- 
fulness in Telemachus. In fact, if it were not something 
too mean and colloquial, the exact force of the expression 
might be represented by the English, " Oh, / dare say 
Ulysses is quite safe." The propriety of the passage will 
be obvious, on considering how apt we all are, even before 
hearing reason rendered, to feel hopefully or apprehensively 
on any subject, according as the general feeling is hopeful 
or apprehensive of those around us. 

In proceeding to give a detailed account of the Attick 
use of dV, I shall adopt the general divisions of Professor 
Hermann's treatise, and successively consider the use of the 
particle with each of the moods. 



WITH THE INDICATIVE. 77 



I.— -Av with the Indicative. 

A Categorical Proposition simply declares that some- 
thing does, did, or will take place — Cyrus conquered. 
A is greater than B, and C is greater than D. %\dtr 6 
KXeojwfiog Kai eyevtro ravra, " Cleonynius came and this 
took place." 

A Conditional Proposition declares no actual taking 
place at all, but asserts such a connection between two 
occurrences, that if the one takes place the other takes 
place also ; predicates the existence of fi, not absolutely, 
but contingently upon the existence of a. 

Obs. — That part of such a sentence which contains the condition 
is termed the Protasis, and that which contains the occurrence 
declared to be connected as a consequent upon this, is termed the 
Apodosis. 

In stating a Conditional Proposition, 

(I.) We may assume the condition to be fulfilled, and de- 
clare that, upon that assumption, the occurrence dependent 
thereon actually takes place, e.g. if A was greater than 
B, C was greater than D, el o %\dev 6 KXcWv/ioe iyevero 
ravra. Or, 

(II.) We may assume, formally, its non-fulfilment, and 
declare that if it had been fulfilled the dependent occur- 
rence would have taken place. If A had been greater than 
B, C would have been greater than D. If your brother 
had been true to his word, I should not act thus, el <f 
r}\dtv 6 KXeuivvfjLOG tclvt av iyevero, " if Cleonymus had come, 
this would have taken place." Or, 

(III.) We may altogether leave out of account the 
actual fulfilment or non-fulfilment of the condition, and merely 



78 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

declare that if it were to be fulfilled the occurrence would 
take place, If A were to be greater than B, C would be 
greater than D. el eXdoi 6 KXebivvjj,0Q ravr' av yevoiTo; if 
Cleonymus were to come this would take place. 

It is with (II.) that we are at present concerned. In this 
case, it appears, conditionality is denoted in English by 
" would," in Greek by the particle av in combination with 
the past tenses indicative. 

It will be seen that past tenses only can be employed, if 
we consider that el rjXdev 6 KXetovv jjloq ravr av iyevero, "if 
Cleonymus had come this would have taken place," is 
equivalent to " the coming of Cleonymus had attached to 
it as a consequence the taking place of this," the whole of 
which regards past time. To give Professor Hermann's 
explanation, the condition is conceived of as unfulfilled, 
and this non-fulfilment, necessarily belonging to the past, 
draws along with it the closely connected verb of the 
apodosis. 

In the ordinary use of av with the indicative tenses there 
is no great difficulty : it follows naturally from the nature 
of the tenses themselves. If notice is to be drawn to the 
duration or progression of the state or action denoted by 
the verb of the apodosis, the particle is joined to the past- 
imperfect — -if not, to the past-aorist ; and if we wish to say 
that in case of the fulfilment of the condition the action 
denoted by the verb would now have been perfect, the av 
must be combined with the past-perfect : e.g. 
dTridvriffKEv, he was dying. 
d-rcedavev, he died. 
ereOvijicei, he had died, i.e. he was dead. 

Hence, 

si iyevero ravra diredvricncev av 

Had this taken place he would -! I dvine" 

I have been J J 5 * 



WITH THE INDICATIVE. 79 

el eye veto ravra direOavev ay, 

{die.* 
have died. 
el eyevero ravra eredyrJKet cir, 

Had this taken place he would -! J- dead. 

l have been ) 

Obviously, if the meaning to be conveyed were, "had 

this been taking place, &c," we must have written in each 

case el ravr eyiyvero, k.t.X. 

The English language does not always enable us, in 
translating, easily to mark the difference between dweQavey 
dy and iredyjj^eL iiv, but it may always be perceived in the 
original ; and in writing Greek prose, the choice between 
the two forms may always be determined by considering 
whether, had the condition been unfulfilled, we should have 
written redvrjKty or direQavev. To repeat what has been just 
given, 

He died, dvtdavtv. He would have died, dvtQaviv av. 
He is dead, teQvt)kev. He would be dead, iredvijKei dy. 

These usages, with their reasons, are sufficiently clear. 
It is necessary however here to observe, that the Greeks, 
affecting the use of imperfects, very frequently say, " it 
would be taking place," where we say " it would take place." 
Accordingly, in writing Greek prose, we must often, per- 
haps most usually, render " this would be so," by rav& 
ovratQ ay et\ey } rather than ouriog dy errxev. Hence has 
arisen the rule commonly given, that dy with the past- 
imperfect refers to present time, with the past-aorist to 
past time. 

The following passage from Demosth. Meid. 549, fur- 
nishes a good example of the use of ay with the indicative 
tenses : — 

* See note ( A), at the end of this treatise. 



80 



THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 



eyw fj.ev yap auYov, ih dvlpeg 'AdrjvaTot, vojil^oj avroyzipd 

/jot yeytvrjcrdat rovroig toiq epyotg' el yap eV, <5v eVf/3oy- 

Xevffe, Kariopd o) ff ev, diravrcov av direaTeprjjxriv eyw Ka\ fjLrjM 
Tatyijvai irpoGvirripyEV o'ikoi juoi, K. r. X. 

" For if one of the designs he formed against me had succeeded, 
I should have been deprived (i. e. I should now be in the state of one 
who is deprived) of all things, and moreover it would have been pro- 
vided for me that I should not so much as be buried at home." 

The precision with which the tenses are employed in this 
passage will be apparent if we remove the condition, and 
consider what Demosthenes would have said, had he been 
describing the actual state of present circumstances. The 
Greek must then have run, Kariopddxrev a tfiovXev aaro, 
iyio ovv diravTuv arc ear eprj/j at ical fxrjde ratyrjvai tt poav 
7rapx €l 0lK0L A 401 ' m w hi cn the aorists Karupdoxrev and 
iPovXevaaro merely state the facts : direaripri^ai is " I am de- 
prived, the deprivation is perfect and complete ;" and 
irpoffvirapxei refers to the state of things now going on. 

For the sake of familiarising the learner to what has been 
already laid down, I shall, before proceeding, give a few 
examples in illustration thereof. 

Aristoph. Nub. 1038. 

e'lT iv dyopq, rr/v diarpifirjv \piyeig iyio & ETraivuJ. 
el yap 7rovr)pov r\v, "Ofirjpog ov^eitot av ettoiel 
tov Neorop' dyopr)7y\v av ovhk rovg ootyovg d.7ravrag. 
" for if it were bad, Homer would not even ever have been for repre- 
senting, &c." 

From consideration of what has been already said, it will 
be evident that av is always in the apodosis of its sentence. 
Often, however, the protasis is suppressed, — in other words, 
no condition is stated, though it is easy mentally to supply 
one, e.g. in 

Vesp. 959. Bdelycleo says of the Dog 

Ktdapi£eiv yap ovk eV/orarcu. 



WITH THE INDICATIVE. 81 

to which Philocleo replies — 

iyio & e^ov\6jj.r}y av ov$e ypd/ufxara. 
" I should have wished,'' i. e. " if it had depended upon me, if the 
matter had been proposed to me." 

Exactly similar is Ecclesiaz. 151. 

ij3ov\6fxi]v fiev erepov av to>v jjdddwv 
Xeyttv ret fii\ria&- tv eKadi]/jir]v fjav\os- 

and Plat. Euthyph. II. D. 

Kivhvvevu) upa u> iralpt itelvov tov dvcpog CeivoTtpog yeyov- 
evat ttjv Teyvr)r ifiovXofxriV yup av jjol tovq Xoyovg fjeveiv 

KOt UKLVr)TOVQ IZpVoQai fJtuXXoV )*/, K. T. X. 

Such instances of suppressed protasis are common enough 
in our own language, — " I should have wished this or that 
to take place thus and thus ;" "I should have said that 
he was an abler man than his father," and the like. There 
is however one case of suppressed protasis, which it will be 
proper more particularly to notice, because, at first sight, 
it might seem to wear the appearance of the use of av in the 
protasis;— I mean the usage found in examples such as the 
following. 

Demosth. in Timoc. 1201. 

el Toivvv tovto layypov av rjv rovry irpog vfxag TtK^r/piov on 

ei,ehilov tov Al(T\piu)va KcifilA yeveoBu) TexfJijptov npog v^xug 

on avveictog fxe d\tj6Fi eyxaXovvTa ov roA/ucj tov Aln^piuva 
■jrapafiovvai. 

To perceive the sense of such a passage is not difficult. 
u If then this would have been for the defendant a strong 
proof that he was ready to, &c. let it be for me also a 
proof, &c." Without the dv the sense would have been 
" if this was a strong proof, &c." And it will not be much 
more difficult to discover that in such a sentence dv is still 
part of an apodosis. It belongs, in fact, to the apodosis of 
a suppressed protasis ; in combination with which it forms 

G 



82 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

the protasis of a larger sentence. This will appear more 
clearly if we examine the formation of such a sentence. 

Protasis. Apodosis. 

a . , a 



el aVe'^a&v avTO layypov av fjv tovt(0 reKfxrjpiov 
Apodosis. Protasis. 



It would have been a strong proof for him if he had shown it. 
Now let us make this whole sentence, protasis and apodo- 
sis together, a part of the protasis of a larger sentence. 

Protasis. 

, ^ , 

Protasis. Apodosis. 

A _^ A. _^ 



el el (XTreZeikev avro la^ypdv av r\v tovt%> reKfiripiov. 
Apodosis. 



Ka.fj.ol la'xypdv Zucaiiog av iyevero. 
Protasis. 



Protasis. Apodosis. 

a ^_ 



If if he had shown it it would have been a strong proof for him. 
Apodosis. 



it would justly have proved so for me also. 

Tn which manifestly the former aV, as well as the latter, 
forms part of an apodosis. Next let us omit the subordinate 
protasis, which it is easy mentally to supply, thus : — 



Protasis. 



el laj(yp6v av r\v tovtio TeKpiripiov 
Apodosis. 

Kdp:ol layypov ^iKaiwg av iyevero. 
Protasis. 



If this would have been a strong proof for him 



Apodosis. 

A 



it would justly prove so for me also. 



WITH THE INDICATIVE. 83 

Wherein the former av, which at first sight seems to be 
connected with the el of the protasis, is in fact part of the 
apodosis of a suppressed protasis. 

Shortly then, for " if it had been so," we shall write 
el ovtojq 7)v, and for " if it would have been so," el ov-iog av 
riv, in which the connexion of av i)v with the el is only- 
apparent, the particle belonging in fact to the apodosis of a 
suppressed protasis. 

Immediately connected with this subject of the sup- 
pressed protasis, is the case in which av with the past tenses 
of the indicative is to be rendered by " could have," e.g. 
to. yap roiavra ovr eylyvero ovt av eyevero. 

" Such things as these neither were taking place, nor could have 
taken place." 

SoiEsch. Suppl. 581. 

rig yap av Karerravvev "H- 
pag voaovg e7rij3ovXovg; 
Aioq roc epyov, c r. \. 
" For who could have stayed, &c." 
Lys. in Agorat. 136. 

£7T£tro ce Kal erepov fieya reKfirjpiov wg ovk av dneKreive 
fypuvtyov ct ov Adrji'a'iog (f>rjaL yeyevfjadai. o <t>pvvf)(og yap 
ovrog, x. r. X. 

" that he could not have hilled Phrynichus." 

I proceed to explain this use. 

tuvt eylvero is " this took place." 

ravr av eyevero el TrpoorjXdev 6 KXeGJWfxoQ, u this would 
have taken place if Cleonymus had come up," is equivalent 
to " the taking place of this was attached to the coming of 
Cleonymus, as consequent to antecedent ; there was a con- 
dition, viz. the arrival of Cleonymus, which would have 
brought about the taking place of this : this was not im- 
possible, for had the condition of Cleonymus' arrival been 

g2 



84 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

fulfilled, it would actually have taken place." So, 
ravr av eyevero el crvvrjyopevaev 6 Ntfaa'e, 
declares that the advocacy of Nicias was a condition upon 
the fulfilment whereof this would have taken place, that 
it's taking place was possible conditionally upon the ad- 
vocacy of Nicias : and in like manner, with whatever 
condition we fill up the protasis or clause with el. If now, 
inserting no particular protasis either actually or mentally, 
we merely say 

ravr av eyivsto, 
the expression will be equivalent to an assertion, that there 
were conditions, the fulfilment of which would have brought 
about the occurrence of this, i.e. that its occurrence was not 
absolutely impossible. ravr av eyevero would be, " this 
might" or " could have taken place," and ravr ovk av iylv- 
ero, " this could not have taken place ; there was nothing 
among all possible happenings which would have been a 
condition on fulfilment whereof this would have taken place ;" 

rd yap roiavra ovr iyiyvero ovr av eyevero, 
" for such things as these neither were taking place, nor could have 
taken place." 

Hitherto we have been speaking of conditional propo- 
sitions — propositions, that is, in which no assertion is made 
respecting outward facts, nothing is declared actually to take 
place, or to have taken place, but it is merely affirmed that two 
occurrences are so linked together, that the taking place of 
the one brings with it that of the other. There is however, 
in Greek, a use of the conditional particle in categorical pro- 
positions, which it is necessary to notice, ravr av iyiyvero 
may signify not only, " this would have been taking place if 
such and such a condition had been fulfilled," merely 
linking together two occurrences without declaring the 
actual external taking place of anything ; but also " this 



WITH THE INDICATIVE. 85 

was taking place on the fulfilment of such a condition," 
i.e. " as often as such a condition was fulfilled;" a sense 
expressed in English either by the simple imperfect (more 
frequently the aorist would be found) " this was taking 
place," or by the circumlocution, "this used to be taking 
place." This usage, as might have been expected, is 
much more common with the past-imperfect, but is found 
also with the past-aorist ; nor does there seem any reason 
why this latter formula should be less frequent than the 
other, except that Attick fondness for imperfects which we 
have so frequently had occasion to remark. I give a few 
examples for sake of illustration. 
Aristoph. Nub. 831. 

dXX otl udtiuifi eVdorore 

nreXavdavo^v av evOvg vtto ttXtjOovq iruiv. 
" I used to he forgetting directly." 
lb. 953. 

ovd av eXecrdat Ceurvovvr eO)v KttydXaiov ti\q patyavlZog. 
" nor yet used it to be allowed, when one was at dinner, to take," &c. 
Equitt. 1347. 

teal vrj A/a y ti duo am Xeyoiri)v pijrope, 
6 fiiv TrotTtadai vavg Xeywv, 6 <T erepog av 
tcuTafii(rdo(popijaai tovQ\ 6 tov fitrrdov Xeyutr 
tov rag Tpit]peig irapacpa^iuiv av <o\ero. 

" one telling you to have ships made, and the other on the contrary 
to spend this money on fees ; the one telling you of the fees used to 
outstrip," &c. 

Plat. Apol. Soc. 22. B. 

Mera yap roue TroXtTitcovg r\a stti rovg 7roirj7aV rovg te tuv 
Tpayadtuiv icai rovg ruiv hdvpapfiw teal rove ciXXovg, oig e Y- 
ravda eV avrotyuipu) fcaraX^ojjievog ifiavrov (expecting here to 
find myself) d^adiaTEpov ekeIvojv ovra. dvaXa/jLjSdvojv ovv avruv 
rd Troirjuara, a fiot eZoKei fxaXtara -xETrpaynaTEvaiJai avrolg, 
mrjpojTU>v uv avrovg ri Xiyotev, 'iv dfia' k: r. X. 
11 I used to be asking, used to begin to ask, I would be asking them." 



86 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE dv 

lb. Sympos. 217. B. 

cvveytyvofxrjv yap, io ctvdpeg, fxovog juo'vw, kou ^fxrjy avrtKa 

haXe^ecrdai avrov jjloi . tovtojv cf on fjidXa iyiyvero ovBev, 

dXX' u)ff7rep eiuidei diaXs^deig dv fxoi kcu (rvvrjfiepevaag <*>X ET0 

CtTTUOP. 

" But I used to find him gone away and departed, after time spent 
in his ordinary conversation with me." 

Aristoph. Plut. 982. 

dXX dpyvpiov dpa^fidg dv yrrja e'ikomv 
elg Ifidnov' oktio 5' dv elg vTvod^fiara' 
Kal ralg dde\<j)cug dyopdacu ya-uviov 
iiceXevcrev dv, rrj \xv\rpi 0' ifxaridiov* 
irvpwv r dv iderjBrj /J£c7/ivwv rerrapwv. 
Professor Hermann remarks that in some examples it is 
impossible to decide whether to take the sentence as cate- 
gorical or conditional. Quare, he writes, ubi neque adjecta 
est conditio non impleta, neque apparet intelligendane sit an 
non, ibi prorsus ambiguum manet, quomodo verba interpre- 
tari debeas. Ut apud Aristophanem in Pace, 1198. 

(h (JiiXraTf (o Tpvyat, 6V r\\xdg rdyadd 
Sidpaiiag, elprjvrjv Trotrjaag* (Jg Trporov 
ovleig iirpiar dv Speiravov ovM koXXv(3ov. 

Perinde est sive vertas, antea nemo facile emebat falcem 
collybo, sive dicas, nemo emisset: si scilicet venalis fuisset. * 
In the same sense of " used to " is employed our own 
conditional "would." For example: " whenever he came 
he would adopt some trick or other for annoyance," i.e. 
" used to adopt." Dr. Crombie,t to illustrate the same 
thing, quotes — 

" Pleased with my admiration, and the fire 
His speech struck from me, the old man would shake 
His years away, and act his young encounters : 
Then having show'd his wounds, he 'd sit him down." 

* Hermann, de Particula dv I. 10. 

f Etymology and Syntax of the English Language, p. 107, Ed. 4th. 



WITH THE INDICATIVE 87 

And the usage must be familiar to all my readers. In 
a very similar way " might" occurs. For example, we find 
in Shelley — 

t( Only over head the sweet nightingale 
Ever sang more sweet as day might fail." 

Though, indeed, this might perhaps better be compared 
with the use of the optative in passages such as 
Plat. Pha>d. 59, D. 

iTEpLeixEvop.ev ovv ekolotote 'ih)Q dyoi\dEir} to heafnoTripLov . . . 
EirEihrj %e dyoi\dEiT], k*.r. A. 

By the Attick writers this use of av with the indicative in 
categoricals is confined to the past tenses- The Epick 
poets join the particle also to the presents and futures, quite 
in accordance, it would seem, with the nature of the sen- 
tences formed by its introduction.* 

• See note A. 



88 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE dV 



II av WITH THE OPTATIVE. 

We now come to the consideration of the pure conditional 
proposition wherein is declared that if the condition were 
to be fulfilled, the occurrence dependent thereon would take 
place, " If Cleonymus were to come, this would happen." 
In this case we have the optative both in the protasis and 
in the apodosis ; alone in the former, combined with aV in 
the latter, — el eXdoi 6 KXeiovvfiog ravr av yevoiro. 

The determination of the particular optative form to be 
used, will depend upon considerations obvious enough 
when we are familiar with the powers of the different 
tenses, e.g. 

rravreq av eTtaivoiev rov KAewvvjuov el ravra 7rotoirj. 
" All would be praising," (or " be for praising") Cleomymus, if he 
were to be acting (or " for acting'') thus. 

7ravT££ av eiraiveaeiav rov KXeiovvfiov el ravra iroirjaeuv. 
" All would praise Cleonymus if he were to act thus." 
ndvrEQ av ercaiveaeiav rov KXeiovvjiov el ravra 7rotoir). 
11 All would praise Cleonymus if he were to be for acting thus." 

Here too, as with the indicative, the protasis is frequently 
omitted when it can be easily supplied by the mind. 
Plat Lach 198, D. 

doicel yap drj ifioi re /cat rwSe, 7repi oarcjv early iTTKTrrjfxrj, ovk 
aXXrj [lev elvai Kepi yeyovoroQ elZevat orry yeyovev, aXXr] $e 
irepl yiyvofievuv oirrf ylyverat, aXXrj he 6V77 av KaXXiara yevotro 
(i,e. el yevoiro if it were to come into being) teal yevrjaerai ro 
jjuJTTb) yeyovog, a'XX' rj avrrj. 

Similar instances may be found in abundance in any 
Attick writer. 



WITH THE OPTATIVE. 89 

Exactly in the same manner that ovk av eyevero ravra 
comes to signify " this could not have taken place," does 
ovk av yevoiro ravra acquire the meaning, " this could not 
take place," and ravr av yevoiro " this could, can, may, or 
might take place." £* eXdoi 6 KXeuivvuoQ ravr av yevoiro, is 
equivalent to M there is a condition, viz. the coming of 
Cleonymus, on the fulfilment of which this would take place." 
So, el ideXrjaeiev 6 Nio'ae ravr av yevoiro, is " there is a con- 
dition, viz. the willingness of Nicias, on the fulfilment of 
which this would take place," and so on of any other 
condition which might be inserted. Now if we merely 
sav ravr av yevoiro, without specifying any condition in 
particular, the force of the expression obviously is, u there 
is some condition on the fulfilment of which this would 
happen, i.e. "this is not absolutely impossible, — this may, 
can, might, or could take place.'' 

For the sake of those who may not be familiar with 
this usage, 1 shall add some examples of it from Greek 
authors. 

ovk olha' y el (pdaii]Q qv. — Aristoph. A v. 1018. 

Plat. Gorg. 450. C. 

naadiv H oifjtai riHv re\vuiv ruiv fjev epyaaia to noXv eariv 
(some consist for the greater part in production) Ka\ \6yov 
(ipdyeoq ceovrai, eviai %e ovHvog dXXa to rfjc re^vi^g nepaivoiro 
av (" jnight be accomplished," literally, "might be accomplish- 
ing," i. e. the accomplishing might be proceeded with) caJ hid 
eiyrjg, oiov ypa<piKrj Ka\ dvlpiavroTroiia, k. r. X. 

lb. 471. E. 

iviore yap av teal Kara\pevhouapropr}Qeir] rig vno iroXXuiv Kat 
Sokovvtiov elvai ri. 

" one might be borne false witness against by many having reputation 
to be somewhat." 



90 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE dv 

lb. CratyJ. 398. E. 

ov'<f et ti oiog t dv eirjv* Evpelv, ov cvvteivu) bid to qyeiodai 
are fjLciWov EvpijaEiv tf ifiavTov. 

" even if I could be able to make any discovery." 

lb. Protagoras, 313. D. 

rdya b* dv tlveq, to apiore, Ka\ tovtiov dyvoolev (may be 
ignorant) Sv iruikovo-iv on xprjffTOv rj irovrjpov Trpog Trjv \pv)(t]v, 

Aristoph. Acharn. 881. 

AI. ETTELTa tyaiveig biJTa bid dpvaWidag ; 
NI. avrrj yap iixTrprjo-EiEV av to vedpiov. 
(" Then are you for laying an information truly on account of lamp- 
wicks?" " Why this lamp-wick might set the dock on fire.") 

AI. vEiapiov dpvaXXig ; NI. oi/j,ai. AI. t'ivi rpoVto ; 
NI. ivdelg av eIq Ti§y)v dvr}p Bot(Jrtoe, 

d\pag av Eiaizk^EiEv elg to vEoipiov, k. t. A. 
"might light and send it in." 
Plat. Charmid. 161. 

ovk apa ffbxfrpoffvvr) av eiy\ albolg, aaxp. cannot then be albwg. 

It is not difficult to see how, from such usages as we have 

just been examining, this optative with aV came to be used 

as a less decided form of expressing an (it may be very 

• The apparent connection of dv in this passage with the d of the protasis 
will occasion no difficulty to any one who has read the explanation given of 
a similar case in the particle's use with the indicative. Like examples are — 
Protag. 329. B. 

e'Lirsp dXXco tw dvQpwirtav irtiQoifiyv av Kal aol Trs.idop.ai, "if I could 
be persuaded by any man," i. e. " if there is any one in the world by whom, 
if he were to say so, I should be persuaded." 
Men. 91. B. 

Kal fiyjv Kal iyto ws ovk eliios Xiyvo, d\\' ilkoX^odV otl it ia-Ti tl 
aXXolov 6pdi) io£a Kal i.TrnxTr\p.r\ (that right opinion is one sort of thing, and 
scientifick knowledge another), ov irdvv fioi ioK(S tovto dKa&iv, dXX' 
ttirzp Tt a\\o (pairjv av sliivai, oXiya i' av (pairjv, ev i' ovv Kal 
tovto Qtirjv av wv olia. The absolute necessity of this form is apparent in 
such passages as Nub. 1162. 

$EI. — ov yap to-d' o'iroos 
p.V r\p.£pa yivoiT av rip.ipai ivo. 

2TP. ovk av yzvoiTo ; <$EI. 7ra>s yap; el jjlti irtp y dfxa 
avTtj y iv o i t d v ypavs te Kal via yvvi]. 



WITH THE OPTATIVE. 91 

decided) opinion or intention. Just as in English, " it 
can't be true,"— « it must be false,"— " I can't," or " I 
couldn't do anything for you," said with a corresponding 
intonation of voice, are in form less decisive than " it is not 
true,"—" it is false,"—" I will not," or " I shall not do 
anything for you." The usage, both of the Greek and the 
English, is probably to be explained from the consideration 
that " it must be," — " it cannot be— thus, or thus," implies 
that the matter is at least so far left doubtful as to require 
the contingencies and possibilities of the case to be taken a 
review of. "I shall not" closes the matter at once; "I 
cannot" leaves opportunity for the pointing out of some 
overlooked possibility. These weaker forms are of very 
common use among the Attick writers. Attici quidem, 
says Professor Hermann, qui amant omnia dubitantius 
dicere, prae caeteris hoc optativi usu delectantur. Such 
are the cases commonly called the use of the optative with 
av for the future, present, or past tenses of the indicative. 
It is usually easy enough to perceive and mark the difference 
between the two forms. In the lines given by Professor 
Hermann to illustrate this difference, we must translate 

a eel yereodai ravra teal ytrtjaiTat, 

"what is to take place, that will take place," (the <ai is 
expressed in English by the emphatick will) ; but 

uti rot fiopaifiov iffri, to yivoiT av 
is " what is fated, it must come to pass," which is, in form 
at least, far less decisive than the former line. So, 
Aristoph. Nubes, 773. 

vdXelg' airtpp ovk ay ^tda^alfurjy a en. 
" I can't teach you any longer." 

lb. 1404. 

a'XX' ovk av dctK'rjaai^t tovq $ica(TKa\ov(;. 
" I couldn't injure," &c. 



92 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE uv 

Equites, 745. 

AA, vat va\ Ztdnpivov drjra, irXrjv firj V t<$ Hvvki, 
AH. ovk dv itadi£oifir]v ev oXkw j^iopta). 
st I couldn't sit in any other place." 

Professor Hermann quotes 
Herodot, VII. 180. 

Ken £7Tftra raJv £7n/3ar£u>v avrrjg tov KaKXtarevovTa dyayovreg 
eirl rrjv Trp^prjv rrjg viiog ecr<pa£av f haMfyov noievfievoi tov elXav 
tQv 'JLXXtjvojv irpuirov ical KciWiarov' rw de a(j>ayiacrdi.vTL tovtq) 
bvofia rjv Ae(ov' rd^a 8' av ri ical ovofiaTog eTravpovro. 

"and in some measure he might perhaps be indebted to his name 
for what he got. 

lb. VII. 214. 

eldeirj jfiev yap ical ewv fir) MrjXievg ravrrjv rrjv drpairov 
Ovrjrrjgt el rfj X^PV ^oXXd iofiiXr)Kiog e'Ln. 

" he might know without being a Malian." 
lb. IX. 71. 

a\Ac£ ravra plv veal tydovu) dv e'nroiev, 

*' they might say. " 
lb. I. 2. 

e'lrjvav <T av vvroi Kprjreg. 

" these might be Cretans." 

lb. I. 70. 

rct^a de dv ical ol aVo8ojU£vot Xeyoiev diriKOfievot eg SnapTriv 
w'c dvatpedeirjffav vVo Saju/un'. 

Closely connected with this class of examples are those 
in which the optative with dv occurs in stating a conclusion 
or inference from what has been previously said. e. g. 

Protag. 310. B. 

K.cu iyco rrjv (j)(t>vriv yvovg avrov, 'l7r7ro/cpar^e, e<prjv, ovrog 
firi tl vsojrepov dyyeXXeig ; OvMv y t) <T og ei fxr) dyadd ye. 
Ev dv Xiyoig r\v 8' £y w '» f. r.X. 

" No not anything," said he, " unless at least you call good some- 
thing the matter." " You say well then" said I. 



WITH THE OPTATIVE. 93 

Thesetet. 155. B. 

Ev "lctQl [w (j)l\e GeaiTT]Te2 on QeoSwpog iroXXovg Srj (very 
many) Trpog fxe eiraivecrag ievovg re kcu dcrrovg, ovdeva tw £71-/7- 
vf.oev tog ak vvv ctj (just now). 

0EAI. Ev av ZyoL <y HioKpareg' dXX' opa yu// -rrai^iov eXeyev. 

iEschyl. P. V. 980. 

EP. kXvoj a iyw fie/irjfioT ov a^LLKpdv voaov. 

IIP. voooifJL dv, el rocrrjfia rovg i\6povg arvyuv. 
"if to hate one's enemies be a disease, I am diseased then." 

Much in the same way is our own " would" used in draw- 
ing conclusions, e.g. " from a comparison of these various 
accounts it would seem that," &c. ; which is nearly equi- 
valent to " it seems then from a comparison, &c." 

It is unnecessary to do more than merely notice the use of 
the optative with dv in requests, seeing that it exactly 
corresponds to our own idiom. Xiyoig dv ravra is " would 
you say this." Professor Hermann quotes 

Soph. El. 1491. 

■)(ojpotg dv eiffu) avv "d\£i' \6yu)v yap ov 
vvv iariv dyujv, dX\d rqg \lv%rig Trt'pi. 
lb. Antig. 444. 

av [lev KOfitL,uig dv atavrov q OiXeig, 
'tiio fiaptiag aWiag iXtvdepov. 
He adds, that the expression being formally no imperative 
but conditional, when a negative particle is to be introduced, 
we find not pir\, but ov. 
11. B. 2.50. 

t£ ovk dv fiaaiXrjag dvd <rr6fx c^wv dyopevotg. 

Protag. 317. E. 

Ni3v h) dv ttyr), Xeyotg w Hwtcparfg, k.t.X. 
" Now then," said he, " would you tell us." 
I deem it unnecessary to add anything about such formula? 
as ntHg dv, rig dv with the optative in expression of a wish, 
as they are obviously in accordance with our own idioms. 



94- THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE ay 



III. — av WITH THE INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE. 

This part of our subject is very easy. The use of dv with 
the infinitive follows immediately from its use with the indi- 
cative and optative. The matter will be best made clear by 
a few examples. 

ravr iylyvero, " these things were taking place." 

tyrj ravra yiyveadui, " he said that these things were taking 
place." 

ravr dv eyiyve.ro, " these things would have been taking 
place," or " would be taking place." 

etyt) ravr av ylyveadai, "he said that these things would have 
been taking place," or " would be taking place." 
And, obviously, 

e<pr] ravr av yevevdai, " he said that these things would have 
taken place," or " would take place." 

Xenophon. Mem. S. 1.3. 3. 

ovre yap rolg Qeolg etyr) KaXwg eyeiv, el ralg fieydXaig Ovaiaig 
jiaXXov >/ rate fxiKpaig eyaipov' iroXXaKig yap av avrolg rd Trapd 
rG)v 7rovr)pu)v fiaXXov r\ rd Trapd rdv yjp-qoruiv elvai Ke^apicrfxeva' 
ovr av rolg dv6pu)7rotg ol^lov eivat i^rjv, el rd Trapd ruiv TTOvr\p<Zv 
fxdXXov rjv Keyapiaiieva rolg Oeoig rj rg, Trapd ruiv j^prjffroiJv. 

The use of dV with the indicative for the expression of 
what might or could have been, extends also to the infi- 
nitive, e. g. 

Xenophon. Mem. S. 1. 1. 

ruJv re rzepi rfjg ruiv Trdvrojv (pvereiog fiepifxviovrojv rolg fitv 
SoKelv ev \x6vov rd ov elvai, rolg Be airetpa rd TrXrjdog' nal 
rolg jxev del Kiveledai irdvra* rolg (He ovSev dv irore Kiv^QfjvaC 
koX rolg [lev Txdvra ylyveadai re teal diroWvcrOai, rolg Se ovr av 
yeveadai irore ovZiv ovr aTroXelcrdai. 

It is perhaps proper to notice, that dv is not to be re- 



WITH THE INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE. 95 

peated with QwoXeladai. The particle can no more be joined 
with a future infinitive than with a future indicative * 

In exactly the same manner the optative with av may 
in subordinate clauses be changed to the infinitive. 

Tavr av yevotro, " this would or might take place." 

ov uoi cokeI ravr av yeveadat, " I do not think that this 
would or could take place." 

Deraosth. in Meid. 510. E. 

el ravr dxovaauv ical (TvveIev ol /3dp/3apoi, ovk av 6le<tBe %-q- 
fioffia 7rdvrag vfiag wpo^Evovg avruiv Trofqaarrdat. 

Without the ou<tQe we should have had iroiqaEtav dV, " if 

they were to hear of it they would make." 

With the participle the case is exactly the same. 

ra yiyvofiEvu the things which are taking place. 

., ... ... (would be ) taking 

ra av yiyvouEva the things which < , , , , > , & 

1 ' r b (would have been J place. 

ra yEvouEra the things which took place. 

, * , ., ... , . , , , f have taken place, 

ra av yevouEva the things which would < , , r 

Lysias, 347. 

Ov% virip vfiuiv diroBavovroc QtjpafiEvovg a'W virip r/je avrov 
7rovT}piag, ra) htcaiiog uiv iv oXtyap-^ia ckqv tovror (t)i,f yap 
av-j}v K-artXi/o-c), cikuIioc c av [sc. cov~oc~] iv ciijjo^pariu. 

Plat. Gorg. 4.50. A. 

iyu> ti Ttvwv Etf.it ; tvov ijcitvg uev av iXEydivrtov (of those 
who would be glad to be confuted), il n fjtij dXrjdig Xe'yw, 
r/ceojQ C av iXEyldvTwv el rig ti fjuj dXj]tiig\Xiyoi, ov\ dr}CEcrrEpov 
fjtivr av iXEy^divrtov rj eXeyldvTwv. 

lb. 4G0. D. 

vvv £i ye 6 avrog ovrog (palvtrai 6 prjTopitcog ovk av iron 
ddttcrjaag. 

Here too will properly be placed the expression, so well 
known to the readers of Demosthenes, one among many 
instances of which occurs 

• See note B at the end of tills treatise. 



96 THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

In Meid, 535. 

7roXXovg $ dv ex iov £ ' 7r£ ' ,/ % Tl > Kai <> t( * iroXXdg irpotydffeig, 
eyQpovg yey evrj/JLEPOvg dXXrfXoig, ovMva irodiroTe ovte dtcrjicoa ovre 
iuipaKa oartg, k. t. X. 

" Though I could mention many," i. e. " if I would." 
I shall close this part of the subject with some very in- 
telligible examples of the omission of the verb to which dv 
belongs In Acharnians, 924, an attendant comes up to tell 
Dicaeopolis— 



eKeXevae (said that you were to) Adfia^pg ere ravrrjg rrjg ^pa\fjLr}c 
elg tovq Xoag avrS /jLeradovvai rdv KiyXdv. 

To which the reply is, 

Ovk dv fid tov At" el do\ri ye fioi trjv dffirida. 
" I would not by Zeus if," &c. 
Nubes, 5. Strepsiades complains, 

ol <f oiKETai pzyKOvaiv, dXX ovk dv irpo tov. 
" But they would not heretofore." 
lb. 107. 

a\\' ei tl KrjSei tQv irarpioiov dXtyiTiov 
tovtiov y'evov fioi cr^atrdpevog TYfv 'nnriKqv. 

<£EI. ovk dv fid rov Aiovvaov el hoirjg ye fioi 
rovg (pavuivovg ovg rpetyet Aeioyopag. 
" I would not by Dionysus if," &c. 

lb. 154. 

STP. (x> Zev fiacriXev, rfjg XewTOTtfrog twv (ppevuiv. 
MA. ri dfJT dv eTepov ei irvdoio "SnoKpaTOvg 
(fypovTifffia ; — 
" What would you say then if,'' &c. 
lb. 779. 

<j>epe tI SfJT dv; 
" Come, what would you do then ?" &c. 

Equitt. 1247. 

io (TTetyave, -^aipdyv aTriQc Kai a aKiov eyui 
Xei7ro)' ere <)' aXXog Tig Xa(3u>v KeKrrjcreTai 
KXeTtTrfg fiev ovk q.v fxaXXov, evTV^JIQ <T 'Lowg. 
" More thievish he could not be, but more fortunate perhaps." 



WITH THE INFINITIVE AND PARTICIPLE. 97 

Djmosth. in Meid. 519, 6. 

vfxelg /xeV, to clvdpeg 'Adriva'ioi, TrdvTEg dficpOTspa tog oiov te 
fidXiar direcilacrQey ttjv r eirayyeXiav Tr)v ifirjv Kal to Iv^Jjuv 
aVo rrjg Tv^rjg' Kal dopvfiov Kal KpoTOv toiovtov tog av EtratvovvTEg 
te Kal rrvvrjadevreg, eVo/rjon-e. 

i. e. tog av Troi-qaaiTE — " such a clamour and applause as 
you would give in expressing approval and congratulation." 

Lysias de Caede Eratosth. 92. The husband is giving an 
account of the tricks of a wife who was false to him. 

fiETa ce to SeIttvov to iraiciov ijooa, Kal idvaKoXatvEV v~u 
rrjg 0epa7raivr)g ETTiTJjdEg XvirovfXEvov "iva raura irony 6 yap 
dvOptoxoc ivcov j]V xxrrEpov yap aVavra ETrvQ6}it)v' Kal iyto ttjv 
yvva'tKa dwiEVCU ekeXevov, kui oovvat tw Traicito Toy titOov, 'ira 
Ttavor\Tai kXoHov' >/ ce to fXEv irptoTOV ovk )/0fXe, tog av dtTfiEvrj 
fxE EtvpaKvla tjicovra ctd yj>6vov. 

M as she would, had she been glad to see me on my return after a 
long absence." 



II 



98 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 



IV. -civ IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 

We have now arrived at the most difficult part of our 
subject. It is not easy to ascertain what the Attick usage 
exactly is, and to explain the principles which have guided 
it is still less so. I shall commence with a few words re- 
specting the nature of the moods. 

The essential difference by which the indicative, on the 
one hand, is distinguished from the subjunctive and opta- 
tive on the other, consists in this, that while the former 
regards some occurrence external, actual, objective, the 
conception which it conveys being in fact merely the mind's 
reflection of the impression produced by that object upon 
the sense ; the two latter are used to convey a conception 
which is not, as in the other case, a mere translation into 
the mind's language of a sense-impression, but one the very 
stuff and material of which, so to speak, are, immediately 
at least, subjective, that is, supplied by the mind itself. 
When I say " he is departing," my conception of the de- 
parture is of a thing actual and objective ; I state an exter- 
nal fact which is the original of my conception thereof, in- 
somuch that the conception itself is true only so far as it 
corresponds (whatever the exact nature of such correspon- 
dence between thoughts and objects may be) to this fact. 
But if I say " he is taking much pains in order that he may 
depart," the departure is conceived of no longer as an out- 
ward taking place, productive of sense-impressions which 
are reflected under its own forms by the understanding, 
of which operation again the words uttered are the exponent, 
the departure is conceived of not thus, but as the purpose 



IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 99 

or object aimed at of an action, viz. the painstaking, which 
is thus objectively conceived of. The objective supplies 
facts, that is, sense-impressions, to the mind ; but all mean- 
ings of these facts, all relations between them, other than 
those of form, position, and the like,- -all relations, I mean, 
indicated by such words as " in order that, because, there- 
fore, until, before, after ;" such as these the mind does not 
find in the external world, but supplies from within itself 
and to them, as it were, applies and fits the sense-impres- 
sions received from the external. Now, when we desire to 
express a conception of something actual, or assumed to be 
actual, e, g< " two lines cut one another ;" " if two lines cut 
one another, the opposite vertical angles, &c." the indicative 
mood is used ; but if the matter of the conception stand 
only in some subjective relation to the actual, or be a mere 
hypothesis grounded on a formally assumed possibility, e> g. 
" supposing A were to be B," or " supposing A should 
turn out to be B," in contradistinction to " supposing A 
actually is, was, or will be B," in these cases the subjunc- 
tive or optative mood will be employed. 

For convenience sake, we shall term the conceptions de- 
noted by the indicative, and those conveyed by the optative 
and subjunctive, objective and subjective conceptions re- 
spectively. We have seen already that a subjective con- 
ception exists in the mind either as a bare hypothesis, 
(supposing such a thing were to take place, ti yivoiro tclvtu,) 
or as an hypothesis grounded upon the present state of things, 
and taking note of the uncertainty of what that state may 
or may not be (if such should turn out to be the case) ; or 
again it stands in some one of various relations to something 
actual and objective (" I am doing this in order that it may 
take place, — I am waiting until it take place, — I shall not 
go away before it's taking place"). 

H 2 



100 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

We see from these examples that, in the subjective con- 
ception, there sometimes is, and sometimes is not, reference 
to a possible objective realization thereof; e g. in " I am 
doing it in order that he may become," the becoming is in- 
deed conceived of purely as the object to which my actions 
are tending ; and this conception of it arises from the idea 
of design which the mind possesses within itself, and does 
not obtain from any impressions ab extra, yet there is refe- 
rence to a time looked forward to, at which the becoming 
may be realized as an objective fact. So in " if it should 
rain to-day I shall get no walk," reference is made to a time 
at which the raining or not raining will be found among 
external realities. On the contrary, in " if A were to be 
B, C would be D," el eXdoi 6 KXetovvjiog ravr av yivoiro, we 
have merely the connexion between antecedent and conse- 
quent without reference to any present or future objective 
state. 

The rule of Attick usage is the following. When refe- 
rence is made to time present or future, for the, at least 
possible, objectising of the subjective conception, the sub- 
junctive is to be used, — if otherwise, the optative. For ex- 
ample, 

" We are doing this in order that he may become," 

TTOlOVfXEV TCLVTCl 07T(OQ y£VrjTCU. 

" We were doing this in order that he might become," 

i7roiovfi£v ravta ottwq ykvovro. 

"Supposing he were to become — el yeVotro." 

Now there is naturally attendant upon our looking for- 
ward to the future, a degree of doubt and uncertainty ; and 
this feeling, like all other feelings, may be expected to have 
a perceptible effect upon the forms of language, and upon 
no language more than that of the Athenians, who, to repeat 
Professor Hermann's observation, amant omnia dubitantius 



IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 101 

loqui. To convey this uncertainty, the particle av is intro- 
duced, and introduced so commonly, as, in some instances, 
almost entirely to have superseded the simpler form. In 
fact, from habit, this formula with av is often used with little 
or no regard to the peculiar force of the particle, which 
seems to be " may be," " perchance," " as may or may not 
happen." The av is probably to be explained by supposing 
the omission of some such word as rj'ie — ttolu ravra o-kwq av, 
yevrjrai fiiyaq " I am doing this in order that, as may happen, 
he may become," as though it had been 7roiw ravra o7rwc, 
and then, with eh] c av ou-ug thrown in parenthetically, 
" and it may be so." " I am doing this in order that (and 
it may be so) he may become great." I do not of course 
mean that the full expression with ifrj was ever in use, but 
that av is thrown in extra constr actionem, to the regularity 
of which, some such insertion as that proposed is necessary, 
and was very probably, originally at least, mentally supplied. 

After what has been already said, it will not be difficult 
to understand that 

el yevrjaerat ravra is " if this shall take place," i.e. "as- 
suming that there will be an actual objective occurrence of 
these things." 

el yevoiro ravra " if this were to take place, supposing 
that such a thing were to take place." 

el yivrjTui ravru " if this should take place, should prove 
to be a consequent upon the general state of things as at 
present existing." 

tdv (el av) yevrjrat ravra M if, as may or may not be, this 
should take place, if this should chance to take place, if 
perchance this should take place." 

So much was this last formula preferred by the Athenians 
to the one immediately preceding it, that to adopt the latter 
in Attick Greek was long held for a solceeism by learned 



102 THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

men. Accidit in hac quoque re, says Professor Hermann, 
quod saepissime, ut quae rara essent corrupta putarentur, 
nee quaereretur quam rationem haberent. Tantum abest 
enim, ut aut per se prava aut ab Atticorum usu abhorrens 
sit constructio particulae el cum conjunctivo, ut quum non 
perinde sit utrum el and idv ponatur non magis edv pro el 
quam el pro idv adhiberi possit. He proceeds to give 
instances and explain them. It is evident that as the 
insertion of the particle introduces an " as may or not be" 
into the sentence, it will be omitted whenever we desire 
to throw out of view the possibility either of the matter 
spoken of taking place, or failing to take place, or, in 
general, whenever the thought that " the actual taking 
place of this is among possible contingencies, and so neither 
certainly will be nor certainly will not be," would obviously 
be improper. The following examples, taken from Pro- 
fessor Hermann's treatise, will make this yet clearer. 
Eurip. Cyclop. 577. 

ovk av (j>iXt]craifi el ^dpireg netpQai fie. 
"Si vel Gratiae me tentaverint:" nempe non sunt facturae. 
Aristoph. Eq. 698. 

KA. Ovtoi fid tt}v ArjfirjTpd y\ el fir\ a c'fc^a'yw. 

e/c rfjgBe rrjg yrjg ovtJeiTOTe fiiwaofiai. 
KA. el fxr) 'xtydyrjc ; 

" If I should not eat you out of," where " if perchance 
I should not," would evidently be impertinent. 
Eurip. Iphig. A. 1238. 

fiXexpov npog yfidg, ofxfia Mg, (piXrffid re, 
IV* dXXd tovto KarQavova e\o) aedev 
fivrjfielov, el fir] ro~ig efioig ureLad^g Xoyoig. 

" Si nihil precibus meis moveris:" quod non videris facturus. 
Equitt. 805. 

el 3e ttot elg dypov ovrog dneXdiuv eiprjvalog $iarpi\pr)> 



IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 103 

Kcii x^P a 9 a 7 w,/ dvadappijaj] rat ore^Kpi'Xw elg \6yov eXOi], 
yvioatrai o'tiov dyaduiv avrov rrj fxiadcxpopq. irupEMiTTov. 

On which Professor Hermann, observes, — Sic libri praeter 
Brunckii membranas, in quibus est e\6oi, quod ille recepit, 
scripsitque ciarpi^ei et dvadap^crei. At recte se habebat 
vulgata. Nam hoc dicit, " si," quod optari magis quam 
sperari potest, pacis muneribus frui populo contigerit, 
sentiet quantis bonis a Cleone fuerit privatus. 

In Pace v. 450. 

kii rig OTpaT-qyilv ftovXofxerog fju) ivXXcip//, 
fj BovXog avrofioXiiv 7rapE<TKEva(TfxEi'ug, 
iirl tou Tpoyov y eXkoito ^aariyov^xEi'og. 

Sic libri omnes et Suidas v. Tpoyog. Male corriai rap 
arguunt quae precedunt: ovtic ci ttoXe^ov tlvax fiovXerai, — 
kU Tig <()dovE~i } — v$i ng iviOvfte't. Qua? sunt ejusmodi, ut hie 
quoque rifi ng positum a poeta esse dubitari vix possit. 

Pariter v. 437. 

\woTig Trpodufiwg ZvXXdfirj ruiy tr^pwUiP t 
tovtov tuv dvepu. fii] Xa/3e7»' ttot da- 

Ubi quamvis in bonis libris IvWdfioi sit, tamen deterius 
videtur. Accurate distinxit Lucianus Dial, meretr. 

VII. 1. T. III. p. 296. 73. dXXd Trpotydaeig del, kai viroa^iaEig^ 
Kcii fjatcpal eXtticec, kcu ttoXv to idv 6 7rarr/p, k(l\ ei tcupiog yi- 

vwfxai tQv 7raTpa)ojv, Kai ?raVra ca. Fortuitum est enim, quan- 
do sit pater moriturus; illud autem ut certum ostendit ado- 
lescens, aliquando se patris bona possessurum. 

The sum of the matter then is shortly this : eI tuvtu yivr)- 
rai is "if this should come to pass," idv tuvtu ygnp-oi is 
" if perchance this should come to pass ;" and this latter 
mode of writing was by the Athenians so much preferred, 
that hardly anything but a manifest impropriety in the in- 
troduction of the a »/, ever induced them to omit it— an impro- 
priety occurring so seldom, that in imitative composition 



104- THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

(the imitative composition, T mean, of those for whose use 
these pages are intended) it will be best and safest never to 
permit it to occur at all. 

What has been said of the subjunctive with e l will apply 
equally to its connection with ore, eVei&f, eiog, the relatives 
oq o(ttiq, and the like. These words may be united with it 
uncombined with the particle av, — nay, in some cases this 
combination seems appropriate or even necessary, but such 
cases occur very seldom ; and, in imitative composition, 
may as well not occur at all. I speak of prose compo- 
sition, for with regard to the dramatists, Porson tells us, 
banc constructionem, suppresso av, amant Tragici. The 
truth is, that in order to have any decided opinion on a 
matter like that now under consideration, we must possess 
such a sense of what the language will or will not admit, 
as only a very intimate acquaintance with it can enable us 
to acquire. A few instances, even if they are certainly 
uncorrupt, prove nothing so long as there is the possibility 
that Attick writers, as well as those of more modern times, 
might have occasionally been careless or soloecistick. The 
use of the relative with what is called the conjunctivus 
deliberative, in connections like oik e'x^ on <pio, does not 
seem to require mention, in giving an account of the usage 
of the particle av. 

oq and oq av are usually distinguished in translating by 
being rendered " who" and " whoever" respectively. 
oq av 7roir](rr} is "he who, if it so chance, does," i.e. "any 
one who does." If in any case such a combination as oq av 
7ioiri(T£uv were to occur, the particle must be construed with 
the verb, and not with the relative, " who would do." e. g. 

Symposium 187. D. 

7rd\iv yap fjicei 6 avroQ \dyoQ, on to"iq jj.ev ko(T/jliolq raiv dvBpu>- 
ttivv, icui (oq av KOfffiiuirEpoi yiyvoivro ol fxijiru) ovtzq, $t~t \api- 



IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 105 

£tfrdai Kal (pvXdrretv tov tovtiov 'ipioTa, Kal ovrog iariv 6 KaXog, 
6 ovpdvwg, 6 rrjg ovpaviag Movcrrjg "Epw£" o t)£ HoXvuviug, 6 
7raV^///ioc, ov ZeI EvXafiovfiEvov irpootyEpziv oig av Trpaatyeprj, u7riog 
UV T7)V fJLEV 7]<jOVt}v O.V70V Kap7roiar}Tai t K. r. A. 

The meaning is, " we must comply with the wishes of the 
well ordered of men, and in such a way as would improve 
any who are not yet such." The dv belongs not to wc, but 
to ylyvoivro. But in the latter part of the quotation, d-mog dv 
KapTruarjTai is " in order that he may enjoy," where a^ be- 
longs to ottwc, not to KapTT(oar)Ta:, or rather, in fact, as was 
before remarked, to a lost verb with which it forms the apo- 
dosis of a suppressed protasis. It is evident that the sense 
of the passage requires this interpretation, for the admonition 
is " to gratify the well ordered, and, if we do so to those 
who are not as yet well ordered, to do it in such a way as 
would improve them." 

So Plat. Euthyph. 11. E. 

eTTEicr) ci fioi coKelg <rv Tpvtyyv, avrog aoi Ivfnrpodv^TJaofiai 
cc7£cu oirug av /u£ hcdlaie 7rfpt tov oaiov. " How you might 
teach me." Some other similar examples of owe joined to 
the optative with av I shall haw to consider in the next 
section, in which the whole subject of the mood used with 
particles of purpose will be treated of by itself. 

Rep. IV. 428. C. 

ovk ixpa Bid ti)v V7rip ruiv tyXiviov (tkevujv Eiri<rn)fir)v [3ovXev- 
ofilvrjv u>g dv e^oi (HXrurtTL, ao(prj kX^teu 7rdXig. 
11 how they might be," &c. 
The following examples are taken from Matthiae. 
Eurip. Heracl. 975. 

ovk cert tovtov offTig dv KaraKrdvoi. 

Thucyd. II. 39. 

Kal ovk ecttlv ote E,Evr)Xacrlaig dirEtpyoniv nva 77 fiadrffjiarog 
rj faa'/zaroe, o fjtrj Kpvcpdiv dv tiq ruiv 7ro\£/itW iZutv io^eX^Qeit}. 



106 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

In both passages the particle is manifestly to be taken 
with the verb, not with the relative. Not oaTig dv "whoever," 
but, o(ttlq " who," dv Karanrdvoi " would kill." 

Plat. Euthyd. 274. E. 

rods Se fxoL e"l7tetov TroTEpov TT£TTEt<Tfxe.vov rihr] wg yj>r) Trap' 
vfxiop fxavddvEiv dvvaiad* dv dyadov 7roifjaai avdpa fiovov rj Kal 
ekeIvov tov fir]7rb) %Et:Eiaaivov • . • Kol tov ovtojq f^ovra 
rrjg avrfjg TEyvrrg epyov TretaaL lag /cat SifiaKrov rj dperrj Kal 
ovtol vfxelg eote Trap iov av /caXXtara rig avro jiddoi, if d\Xr]g ; 

Upon which Heindo'rf thus annotates. Recte ^ddoi, non 
fxddri : nam, ut hoc semel moneam, quandocunque vocula av 
ad pronomen relativum pertinet, ut 8g av, on a*, etc., sonent 
quicunque, quodcunque, etc., subjunctive* modo opus esse 
puto, sive rectus sit sermo sive suspensus : contra quando dv, 
uti h. 1. trahi debet ad subsequens verbum, optativam ad 
hanc voculam requiri. After referring to this note,Matthi8e, 
whose previous observations are by no means clear, proceeds : 
"And to mark the indefiniteness more distinctly, Phaedon. 
p. 101. E, fjieya av floatrjg, on ovk olffda dWiog iriog e/caorov 
yiyvojievov, r) aETaoypv rrjg l(iiiag ovalag EKaarov ov av fXErda^pi, 
"of whichever they may partake," Thucyd. VII. 48. f O U 
Niriag ivofiL^E fiiv ical avrog irovrrpd atyhjv to Trpdyjxara slvai 
. rdi & EU(ba\ e~l tote Xoyw ovk scpri dirdlyEiv tt)v orpaTidv. 
ev yap ElMvat otl 'Adrjvaloi ar<poJV ravra ovk aVo^ovrcu, (octte 
fjtrj avT&v xprjcpMranEVtoV direXOElv. Kal yap ov rovg avrovg \pri- 
(j>iEi<rdai te tceoI otyutv Kal rd 7rpdyjuara, dicnrEp Kal avTol, opdUvTag 
Kal ovk dWo)v EiriTifJirjaEi aKOvaavTag yvioaEorOai, d\A' e'£ u>v 
dv Tig ev Xiyiov 5ia/3d\\oi, ek tovtojv avrovg TceiaEodai* [T)r* 
Arnold paraphrases " for they who would vote upon their 
conduct would not be men whose knowledge would be 
derived, as that of the army was, from having been eye- 
witnesses of the facts, and not from hearsay ; but rather men 
who would form their judgment from the invectives of any 
eloquent orator."] 



IN CONNECTION WITH THE SUBJUNCTIVE. 107 

To put together passages so altogether diverse, and to 
explain this use of the optative with Sg aV by saying that 
it " marks the indefiniteness more distinctly," is surely a 
somewhat confused method of writing on grammar. If 
6g av noirj be " whoever is doing," and vq av Troioi-q be good 
Greek to convey exactly the same meaning, only so as to 
" mark the indefiniteness more distinctly," it is at least sur. 
prising that this latter form should not occur more frequently 
than we find it. To me, as I read over these two passages, 
it appears perfectly certain that they are, both of them, 
instances of the use of the optative in the oratio obliqua, and 
as such 1 shall refer to them, when I come to treat of that 
form of expression. 

Throughout the connection of av with the subjunctive, the 
learner will observe that it is never the particle itself, but 
always its combination with some other word, which is 
construed with that mood. On the difference between con- 
nection and construction of one word with another, the 
reader will find some remarks, translated from Professor 
Hermann, in note C. 



108 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 



V — The Particles of Purpose, w'c, iVa, oVwc, etc. 

The examples given at the close of the last chapter, naturally 
lead to the consideration of the Attick usage of av with the 
particles of purpose. Instead, however, of confining myself 
strictly to the proper subject, I think it better to give the 
learner an account of the entire usage of these particles in 
the Attick writers. It will, perhaps, be as well to repeat 
here the rule above given, for the use of the optative and 
conjunctive moods respectively. It was laid down that when 
reference is made to time present or future, for the, at least 
possible, objectising of the subjective conception, the sub- 
junctive is to be used, — if otherwise, the optative. 

The particles tva, oVwe, toe, etc., considered as synony- 
mous, are placed after a verb, to denote that the action 
signified by it is performed as a means to the accomplish- 
ment of something else expressed by a following verb, e.g. 

7TOIU) TClvd' OTTIOQ 7TjO/to/XCU. 

"Iain doing this as a means to buying," i. e. "in order that I may 
buy." 

The action signified by the principal verb may be under- 
stood of either (A) as actually done, or doing (7roiw, Treiroi-qKa), 
or (B) merely a wish may be expressed that it had been 
done, the whole expression implying that in fact it was not 
accomplished. First then of 

(A). In this case the verb following iva, etc., must be in 
the optative or subjunctive, the choice between the two 
being determined according to the following rules. 

(1) If the time for the accomplishment of the purpose be 
present or future, the verb by which it is expressed follows 
in the subjunctive, e.g. Xen, Anab. VI. 3. 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE (Jc, tVa, 07TWC, ETC. 109 

KftciTtaTov ovv ijfuv ojQ rdyiara j3orjdelv rdlg dvZpdaiv OTTWQ 
ovv EKtivoic jua-^uj/jteda teal firj. K, t. X. 

Horn. II. E. 127. 

'A^\i)v 3' av tol die o^QaXfidv eXov rj Trp\v eirrjev 
0(f>p ev yiyvitiffMjg i\fiev Oeov ifie /cat culpa. 

Lucian, in Lapith. 437. 

ravrd aoi Trapedefirjv oirwg ^ddrjg. 

Plat. Gorg. 51.5. B. 

'AXX' ov (f>iXoveiKia ye epioroj, dXX' tog dXj)duig flovXofxevog 
elcevat ovrivd ttots rponov out ce'iv noXiTeveaQai ev V^'tv, el 
dXXov tov eni^ieXjjaei iifiiiv eXOwv eVt rd rijg -rroXewg irpayfiara 
rj oTTiog on fieXriOTOi 01 ttoXItcu u)^.tv. 

(2) If the time for the accomplishment of the purpose 
be past, the same particles are followed by a verb in the 
optative, e. g. 

Tbucyd. [I. 75. 

tvXa fxev ovv refivovreg irapuMtofiOvv etcciTeptodev, oirwg /.n} 
layeoiro em ttoXv to ■^ojy.a. 

I. 109. 

HamXeur Tre/JTret eg Aatcecai^iova Meydj3v^ov -^py'] f.iaru l^ovTa, 
o7rijjg eg r//j 'Amcijy eopaXccy TreirrOevTojv tujv YleXoTrovvt](Tiu)v, 
dir kiyviTTOV dnaydyoi rovg 'Adrjvaiovg* 

Such is the grammatical rule, and the learner will easily 
perceive its accordance with what ha* been above stated of 
the inter-relation of the optative and subjunctive moods. 
In Greek authors, however, we continually find it violated 
by the occurrence of a subjunctive where we should have 
expected an optative. This arises from that dramatick 
character of the Greek language, which we have already 
often noticed. The same tendency which leads the narrator 
to depict as passing before the eye of the fancy the facts of 
his story, leads him also to depict them as passing vow 

• A short practical rule, comprehending (1) and (2), is — Render may by 
the iubjunctive, might by the optative. 



110 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE dv. 

before it. The continual employment of imperfects, and 
the frequent return, in the course of narration, to the 
present tense, have a common origin. Instances of this 
substitution of the subjunctive for the optative abound in 
Greek. By way of illustration, it will be sufficient to give 
the following passage, which has been already quoted in the 
preceding pages. 

Lys. de Csede Eratosth. 92. 

e.7T£icri de to Traidiov iyevero r/julv, ?) f^rjrrfp avro idrjXa^ev' 
'iva he fit], oxoTe Xoverrdat heoi, tcivhvvevrj Kara rrjg KXipaKog 

Karafjal vovaa, eyia /.iev dvio hii]TM^r]v ical fxerqi fie rd 

celrrvov to Traitiiov e(36a, m\ edvcrKoXatvev vVo rrjg QepaTraivqg 
eTrirrjoeg Xvirovfjievov 'iva ravra 7roirj. — ical eyio rrjv yvvalKa 
diuevai eKeXevov ical hovvai rw iraidio) tov tltQov 'iva izava^rai 
KXalov. 

In a similar way, perhaps, is to be explained the use of 
the future indicative, after particles of purpose, which is 
found in both (1) and (2) as a substitute for the optative or 
subjunctive, and indeed, after o-n-iog is very common. 

Herodot. VII. 8. 

Me'Ww £ev£ai tov 'JLXXrjcnrovTOV, arparov eXq.v did rrjg Eu- 
pioirrig eVt rrjv EXXa'^a 'iva ' Adrjvaiovg Ti/juvprjarofjiai.* 

* Bekker reads TL/Awpijacofiai. On the contrary, Creuzer's edition retains 
and defends the old reading. We find in Viger, " Fallitur ergo Thomas 
Magister, qui ait, 'Iva dxxi Xlys, ovx 'iva £<rovrai' irdvv yap d/xadts iirl 
tov {aeXXovtos [* with the future'], 'iva r} idv, r\ dv, rj oTav Ttdivai. Sed 
hie grammaticus jam refutatus est ab Abreschio in Misc. Obs. Nov. vol. i. 
torn. iii. p. 14." And Professor Hermann, who has a long note to correct 
the errors of Viger, Zeunius, and others, touching the particles 'iva, oeppa, 
o7r&)?, o>e, concludes by saying, without limitation, "Cum futuro indicativi 
particulse jstse conjunguntur et in constructione cum prseteritis et cum prae- 
sente." Matthiae too, in his Greek Grammar, simply remarks, " the future 
is often found instead of the conjunctive, and, in particular, this is almost 
the regular construction after ottws." On the contrary, Buttmann, after 
giving the rule for joining the particles of purpose with the optative and con- 
junctive, says further that "the conjunction oVajs, when it refers to the 
future, has either the conj. or the fut. indie" Rost is of the same mind. — 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE u>g, lva, oirtog, ETC. Ill 

Lys. Eratosth. 413. 

ETrefiovXevEfTde oirojg fxrjr dyadov fjtr)c)£V ^(piaeade, iroXXuv te 
ev^eelg eaeatiE. 

Demosth. Cherson. 93. 

TrpaTTE-ai Ze kcu 7rapa<TKEvd^£raL tovto, 07rw£, vfiuiv jjlev o'lkol 
fiEvovTiov, eIu) ce fxr}CEfiiag ovarjg rfj woXei £i/va'yuewc, fiErd 7r\ft<r- 
rr)Q. T]ov\iac diravff oaa fiovXErai <&i\unroQ SioiKjjaETai. 

Protag. 325. C. 

'Ek Trailb)v (Tfjuxpuiv dp^afXEvoi. fJ.Ey(pi ovwsp <?V £bj<ri kcu 
otddffKoviTi teal vovQetovctlv- e7teiMv daTToy (as soon as ever) 
(Tvvlri rig rd XEyofXEva, teal rpn<p6g ko.1 fitjrrjp KaX 7r aid ay io yog 
Kai avrog 6 7raTrjp TTEpt tovtov Ztafxd^ovrai^ uirojg (Jg jjeXtkt- 
Tog carat o walg. 

Soph. Philoctet. 1057. 

\(opEL <tv' fa/ TrpoaXevaae, yEvvalog -KEp we, 
ijfiuii' uTTiog fir} tt]v tv\tji' cia(pd£p£~ig. 

Aj. 564. 

KEivy t ifir)v dyytiXaT EVToXr)v, oirittg 
tqv ira~ic)a tovCe irpog Cofiovg Efiovg dycov 
TfXctylWJ'l P€/£cC, tc. t. X. 

" that he shall show." 

yEsch. Ag. 819. 

teal to fiiv xaXtZg Eyov 

07T(t)g ypOVl^OV EV flEVE~l fiovXEVTEOV. 

"that it shall remain well." 

And in Ellendt's ' Lexicon Sophocleum,' we read, " Cum indicativo fu- 
turi, fallaci specie similitudinis particulae o-jtwv, coraponi finale 'lva sibi 
persuaserat Brunck. ad Eur. Bacch. 1380, quern refutavit Elmsleius.'' 
Brunck's note referred to, is " Cum futuro indicativi lva perinde ac oVws 
construitur ;" whereon Elmsley annotates, M Recte Bruuckius, modo ad apos- 
tolorum verba [from which Brunck had quoted] monitum ejus referatur." 
Finally, Professor Hermann, in his edition of the Bacchae, published as a sort 
of supplement to Elmsley's, suffers the latter critick's dictum respecting 'lva. to 
pass unnoticed, and himself ends a note on Soph. CEd. C. 155, with " Futuro 
non jungitur 'lva, ut." In these last five words the learner must find the 
rule for his own practice. It may be as well to remark, that, in the quo- 
tation from Thomas Ma n nster, an Attick writer would have used fiv. 



112 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

It. seems to me not very difficult to understand the diffe- 
rence, in such sentences, between the indicative and the sub- 
junctive. We say in English, either, " I fear that it may be 
so," or ' ' I fear that it will be so ;" either " I am doing this 
to the end that the property may be my own," or " to the 
end that it shall be my own ;" either, " we demand that it 
may be so," or " we demand that it shall be so ;" either, 
" you desire that I may be taught this," or " you desire 
that I shall be taught this." If the verb be in the sub- 
junctive, the conception conveyed by it is conceived of as 
purely subjective, merely as the object of a purpose : if it 
be in the indicative, the conception is of something sup- 
posed or fancied of as objective, and the particle going 
before indicates that the action denoted by the preceding 
verb aims at the realization of that which is so supposed of. 
In " we pray that his house may stand fast for ever," the 
standing fast is conceived of simply as our desire; while in 
" we pray that his house shall stand fast for ever," the same 
standing fast is conceived of as something external to the 
speaker's mind, and declaration is made that we pray for it. 
The sentence is almost equivalent to, " his house shall 
stand fast for ever, 5 ' — the standing fast presented to the fancy 
as objective — " we pray for the coming to pass of that 
standing fast," i.e. that what has been supposed of as an 
objective occurrence, may as such be realized. The diffe- 
rence is not unlike that between el ravra yevrjcreTai, and eaV 
ravra yevrjrat, — " on the supposition that this will actually 
and objectively take place," and " if we should find things 
turn out thus." If I have succeeded in making this matter 
clear to the learner, he will be prepared to feel no surprise 
at finding this use of the future indicative, after particles of 
purpose, so much more common in Greek than in English. 
I have already more than once drawn his attention to the 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, (Jf, iVa, ottwc, ETC. 1)3 

objective and dramatick character of the Athenian mind, 
and I need hardly point out how entirely this use of the 
indicative is in accordance therewith. It was the Attick 
disposition, as soon as a conception was suggested, in fancy 
to suppose its actual realization, to give it at once a hypo- 
thetical objectivity ; and out of this disposition arose the 
frequent use of the indicative future in the case we are speak- 
ing of, as well as certain other employments of the same 
mood yet more remarkable, of which I shall hereafter have 
occasion to speak. 

It will readily appear that this indicative future is best 
suited to cases in which the occurrence denoted by the verb 
after oirwg is with entire, or, at least, considerable confidence, 
expected to take place ; while, on the other hand, it would 
as obviously be improper whenever such an expression of 
expectancy is excluded. For example, in Soph. Aj. 1089. 

COi OOL 7TpO(pU)l'dj TOVCt fJi7J QdlTTtlV, 07TWQ 

firj TOVCt 6diTTU)r t avrog elg TCKpac, ireaijv. 

ireaei would be wholly inadmissible. Menelaus is far from 
meaning to assume that Teucer will bury Ajax, and so will 
actually come to need a grave himself: on the contrarv, 
his object is to deter him from burying Ajax. by the fear of 
what may happen as a result should he do so. The whole 
clause to which ireVpc belongs, is subordinate to 7rpo0aW, 
and in fact, a sort of epexegesis of that word. On the other 
hand, upon the passage cited above from Soph. Phil. 1058. 
Ellendt remarks, " praevidet enim fore Ulixes." 

So Eurip Cyclop. 558. 

dirojivKTEOv ci ool y ottivq \rj\pet Kieip. 

On which Professor Hermann writes: " Si dixisset ottwc 
XaPyq mew, nihil aliud quam consilium indicasset, quo ille 
emungi deberet, ut poculum acciperet. At quum dicit ottwc 
Xt^ci Truly, simul significat esse accepturum." After what 

I 



I14« THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE ay. 

has been said, the learner will find no difficulty in such 
passages as 

Aristoph. Acharn. 343. 

dXX 07TWG fir) V rdlg rpifiojffiv iyKddrjvrai nov Xldoi. 

that is, in English, " see that there are not," not " that there 
be not," — or with the many instances of the use of the future 
indicative after oVwe in the sense of " mind that," " be sure 
that," "see to it that;" e.g. 
Aristoph. Nub. 478: 

dye vvv, oVwc, orav tl 7rpo(3dX(Ofiai ootyov 
irept riov fjisrewpoov evdeiog vtyapTrdaeiQ. 

lb. 1402. 

vvv ovv ottioq, <i 0/Xrare, 

diroXelg (jleteXOwv, k. r. X. 

lb. 1131. 

VVV OVV 07T(t)Q (T(jJ(T£IQ fl £7T£t KaTToiXeaaQ. 

To return to the second case mentioned in the division 
given in page 108, (B). In this case the verb following 'ha, 
etc. must be in one of the past tenses indicative ; the par- 
ticular tense to be employed being determined by consider- 
ations connected with the peculiar force of each. 

Aristoph. Pax 135. 

Ovkovv ixPV y cre II)?yaffov ^ev^ai irTepov, 
"07T(t)Q icpaivov rdig deoig rpayacojTEpoc. 

" Ought you not to have done so, that you might have 
been wearing a more tragick appearance, etc." Wherein a 
wish that it had been done is expressed, and it is at the 
same time implied that actually it had not been done. 

Plat. Euthyd. 304. E. 

Kcu firjv, e0r;, d£tov y i\v aKovoai. TV Be j}v b* iyoi. "Iva 
ijicovaag dvBpwv SiaXeyofieviov, ot vvv no^Taroi elcri ruiv napl 
rovg TOtovTOvg Xoyovg. 

" In order that you might have heard, etc." 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, W£, IVO, 07TWC, ETC 115 

Crit 44. D. 

El yap ui(f)t\op t o> Kpiridv, oloi te flvai 01 tto\\o\ rd 
fxiyiara BCjea e^epyd^eadai, 'iva oloi te y\<rav koX dyadd rd 
jxiyiara. 

" In order that they might be able, etc." 

Protag. 335 C. 

d\\d ok £~xpijv VfJ-~tv <Jvy%u)p£~ii' tov dfi<p6repa cvvupEvov, 'iva 
ffuvovaia lyiyvETo. 

"but you, who are able for both, ought to have yielded to me, in 
order that a conference might have taken place," — lit. '• might have 
been taking place." 

Soph. El. 1120. 

ujq oj(f>E\ov trdpoidev ikkiT&P fiiov, 

TTOlv EQ £,EVY\V (TE yttlav ifC7T6fl\l>ai t yEpo'iv 

xXEipaaa ralvh, Kavaaojaaodai (povov, 
oirujg Baviov ekekto rrj rod' quepa 
rvfxfiov irarpaiov koivuv Ei\i]\toc f*Epog. 

Electra is addres*ing her brother, whom she believes 
dead. 

DJnareh. adv. Demosth. 9. 

Avolv yap BdrEpov t\pr]v avrovg era dirrj\\dyf.iEOa 

tovtov tov Srjfjiayojyov. 

"In order that we might have got rid of and now be rid of this 
demagogue.'' 

The force of the past-perfect in such combinations is 
easily perceptible. It is however but little employed, the 
past-aorist being substituted for it. Indeed, even in direct 
narration, this substitution is by no means uncommon. The 
past-perfect, it is to be observed, conveys all which is 
conveyed by the past-aorist, and more; and whenever this 
"more" is of no great importance to the sense, the less 
adequate form may harmlessly be made use of. So in 
English; for example, " I went away when he arrived:" 
" had arrived " would manifestly be the more strictly 

i 2 



116 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

accurate expression. The aoristick form recommends itself 
by its greater lightness. 

Before proceeding farther, it will be convenient to draw 
out the whole usage of the particle #m*c. 

"07T(og stands to vug in the same relation with that borne 
by oariQ to riQi OTtoiog to ttoIoq, odsv to iroQev, and the like, 
the latter member of each pair being used in direct, the 
former in dependent interrogations. Every reader of 
Aristophanes is familiar with such passages as 

Equitt. 126. 

AH. evravd* eveariv avrog ojq dTroXKvrai. 
NI. Kal 7rd>c ; AH. ottioq ; 
NI. " And how?" DE. " Do you ask how?" 

So, " how am I able ?" would be 7ra>c o\6q tI elfii, but 
" I wonder how I am able." 

Equitt. 211. 

rd fxev \6yi ahdWei fxe, davfj,d£<o (? oVwc 
Toy ^rjfiov oloq r eift eTriTQOTrEvziviyu). 

From the primary "how/' ottioq diverged into the colla- 
teral meanings "as" — " that" — " in order that." The ease 
with which this might take place will be apparent to anv 
one who considers that, " act hoiv he will he can please 
nobody," and " act as he will, etc." are equivalent expres- 
sions ; and remembers the interchange between " how " and 
"that" in passages like the following : — 

*.* But when I told the cruel scorn 
That crazed this bold and lovely knight, 
And how he roamed the mountain woods, 
Nor rested day nor night ; 

And how he crossed the woodman's paths, 
Through briars and swampy mosses beat ; 
How boughs rebounding scourged his limbs, 
And low stubs gored his feet ; 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, 0>C, Iva, 07TWC, ETC. 117 

That sometimes from the savage den, 
And sometimes from the darksome shade, 
And sometimes starting up at once 
In green and sunny glade ; 

There came and looked him in the face 
An angel beautiful and bright ; 
And how he knew it was a fiend, 
This miserable knight ! 

And how, unknowing what he did, 
He leapt amid a lawless band, 
And saved from outrage worse than death 
The ladye of the land ! 

And how she wept, and clasped his knees; 
And how she tended him in vain, 
And meekly strove to expiate 

The scorn that crazed his brain j 

And how she nursed hiin in a cave ; 
And how his madness went away, 
When on the yellow forest leaves 
A dying man he lay."* 

Dr. Johnson gives in his explanation of the word hoiv — 
"8. In an affirmative sense not easily explained ; that so it is; 
that— 

M Thick clouds put us in some hope of land, knowing how that part of 
the south-sea was utterly unknown, and might have islands or con- 
tinents — Bacon." 

Plat. Charmid 163. E. 

&pa n)v ruiv dyaduiv irpa^iv rj iroir)<riv t rj unuiq av fiovXei ovo- 
fjLuCtiv (or call it how [or as~] you will), ravrriv Xeyetg av 
outypoovv-qv elyat; 

Soph. Philoctet. 77. 

aXX uvto tovto etl aocfuffdrirai, kXowevg 
oVwc yfn/cct raJv dviKijTtov ottXwv. 
"how you shall become." 

" Coleridge. 



118 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

Plat. Crit. 50. 

'AW wde okoizei' ei fieWovaiv rjfXiv evQevIe e'Lte dTrol^pda- 

KELV eW OTTIOQ dsl oVo/XClOXU TOVTO, iX0oVTE£ 01 VOjlOl KCLI TO 

koivov rfjg 7r6\£tt)Q ETnrrrdvTEQ 'spoiVTO, k. t. X. 

Phaedr. 228. C. 

EjJLOL OJQ d\r)6(Ji)Q 7ToXv KpUTLGTOV OVTiOQ 07TWQ fivVOlfiat («S I 

can) Xiyeiv. 
Xen. Anab. III. 1,6. 

ETTOpi^ETO (JITOV OTTWQ idvvaro. 

Soph. (Ed. Col. 1206. 

tekvov, fiap£~iav rjfiovrjv vikolte )Lt£ 

XsyOVTEQ' EtTTO) (? OVV OTTOJQ VjXlV (filkoP, 

Msch. P. V. 974. 

ifxol 5' eXclggov Zt]v6q rj /JirjdEV [ieXec 
dpdru), KparEiTio tovIe tov flpa^vv XP° V0V 
<mu)Q OeXei' dapov yap ovk aplsi BeoIq. 

Soph. CEd. R. 1362. 

dXX' ■>} tekvcjv hrjr o\pig i\v E^ifjEpog 
fiXdaTOva o^iog e(3Xo:gt£ ttpogXevggeiv ifxoi, 
ov Srjra rolg y e/xoigiv 6(f>daXfio~ig •kote. 

Trach. 328. 

ffi ovv idadu), kcli rropEVEffdit) orkyaq 

OVTIOQ 07TWQ rj^tffTa f K, T. X. 

Hence is easily understood the use of o7rwe (and of wc 
which is more common) to strengthen superlatives. From 
the use of ottojq in the passage last quoted, the transition is 
very slight to that which occurs 

Soph. Philoctet. 622. 

ovk olh' iyio tclvt. dXX' eyw jiev elfi eVe 
vavv' G<p<£v h" 07T(i)g apitrra Gv/ucpEpoi Seoq. 

Msch. Agamem. 583. 

onwg 3' upiara tov ifiov aldo'tov ttogiv 
tnrtvaio irdXiv fioXovTCt ^e^ugOch. 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, wg, tva, OTTiOg, ETC. 119 

lb. 1321. 

i/iol (T 07ru)Q Ta^iffTa y iixirf.ae.lv IokeI. 
Of a similiar character are such expressions as that in 
Aristoph. Equitt. 972. 

KaiTOL TrpeafivTEpijJV tlvujp, 

o'tojy dpyaXewToirojy, 

Iv rw SeiyfiaTi* tQv ?ik(Zv 

ijtcovff dvTiXeyovTiov, 

U)C, r. t. X. 

Not unlike the playing into one another in English, 
above mentioned, of the meanings how and that, is the use 
of ottwc in 

Soph. (Ed. R. 547. 

tovt avro \ir\ fxot <ppd'£ dnojg ovk ei Katcog. 

And Achaeor. Conv. 

e'yai £' ipui <te Ceuov ovcev ovd' oirtog 
tyvyag iraTpuag eUXr)Xdaai ytiovog, k. r. X. 

We find oirwg in the sense of simple " that" in passages 
such as the following : 
Soph. Philoctet. 518. 

TOVT OVK E(J& OTTUtg TTOT £l£ EfXE 

TovvEihog E&ig ivcitcwg oveiCiocli. 
Aristoph. Equitt. 470. 

Kut Tavrd fx ovk dpyvpiov ovte ypvoiov 

Cicovg dvairtiotic 

bntog iyio tcivt ovk 'AOrjraioig (ppdaoj. 
"that I shall not tell." 

" Caring how a thing might be brought about," Matthiae 
tells us, " presumes care that it should be brought about, 
and the two phrases easily pass into one another." This is 
well illustrated by the use, in 

• " Schbmannusprobabiliter conjecit forum fuisse urbanum, ubi actionum 
quae apud quemque magistratum institutoe erant tituli aut summaria tabulis 
inscripta proponebantur." — Dindorf's note. 



120 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE dv. 

Msch. Suppl. 402. 

del rot fiadeiag (ppovridog aiorr^piov^ — < 

oVwc a vara ravra, Trpiora jj,ey iruXei, 

avrolal & tjfxiv eKreXevrrjaei KoXeHg, 

Kul /jLtjre hrjptg pvaiojy Etyd^Erat, 

jjlijt ev deciiv edpaifftv wcT IdpvfjiEyag 

sicdovrEg vjuag, rov TravioXedpov Qeov 

fiapvv £vyoiKoy OriaofAead' dXdaropa. 
where we may translate either, " how these things shall 
end," or " that these things shall end." 

We shall now find no great difficulty in the usage of 
b'-reioQ in combination with dv. We have already seen that 
og is ie who," og ay " whoever." In like manner 6Vwe dlog 
re elpu is " how I am able — as I am able," and^-we av dlog 
re J " howsoever— as-so-ever I be able." e.g. 
Plat. Gorg. 481. D. 

aiaddvofxat ovv aov EKaarore, Ka'twEp ovrog Selvov, on ovroa 

dv (f>rj aov rd iraiducd icai on tog ay <prj £%Etv ov Zvva^iEVOv 

dvrtXiyetv. 

" how-man y-soever and howsoever." 

A very good example occurs, Protag, 336. B. 

'AX\' 6pdg, EtyY}, tb SwVparfc* Sticaia SokeI Xeystv Upurayopag 
d^toiiy avra) re E^slvat hiaXiyeadai ontog fiovXerai Kal adi ontog 
ay av av fiovXrj. 

" claiming that both he should have liberty to carry on 
the discussion as he wishes,"— i. e. in that particular way 
in which he knows himself to desire it, — ■" and you on the 
other hand in what way soever you wish," — s. e. in your 
way whatever that way may be. 

Gorgias, 454. C. 

orrep yap Xeyio (for as I tell you), rov e£rjg evekcl 7repaivea0ai 
rov Xoyov tpwrw, ov aov eveica, dXX' 'tva fxrj idt^wfiEda vnovo- 
ovvreg 7rpoap7rd^Etv dXXrjXwv rd Xeyo/xeva (but in order that 
we may not be accustoming ourselves, on conceit of the mean- 
ing, to be catching at prematurely from one another what is 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, u>£, <Vu, 07rui£, ETC. l l 2l 

being said) a'Ma au rd eavrov Kara ti\v virodtffiv ottuq ay 
fiovXy (in whatsoever way you wish) 7repairrjQ. 

Phaed. 115. C. 

ddirTWfxev he at riva rpo-rrov ; (but in what manner are we to 
bury you ?) "Ottws av, e(f>r}, ftov\r)oQt, edv trip ye Xa/3ijre 

fXE KCll jUl) EKtyvyiO VfJLUQ. 

The learner should bear in mind that av always intro- 
duces the notion of chance, possibility, " as may or may not 
happen," into the sentence. Hence it will easily be appa- 
rent that in " I know not how I am to disbelieve you," 
vol he \iyovri. ovk ex w ottvq aVt<xroii, the aV, though found 
in all the MSS., is inadmissible. It has accordingly, both 
here and in the similar passage of Xen. Anab. II. 4, 20, 
oux Uflwiw tKtivot 07TOL oV (pvyuxTi, been omitted by the later 
editors. The sense to be expressed is, M they will not have 
whither to fly to," or " they are to fly to;" and the intro- 
duction of aj is evidently impertinent. 

Similarly with the other leading signification of ottwc. 
ottu)£ yivrjrai is " that it may prove;" ottwc oV ytrrjTCH " that 
perchance it may prove — that, as may or may not be, it 
may prove." Obviously, in very many cases either form 
may be adopted at the speaker's choice. Yet often also 
there is a manifest propriety in adopting the one rather than 
the other of them ; and sometimes, to introduce the notion of 
chance or possibility is plainly improper, and the particle 
therefore wholly inadmissible. To illustrate this point, 
Professor Hermann has collected a great number of ex- 
amples, a few of which I shall insert here. The usage of 
w'c, with and without dv, is almost exactly similar to that of 
07rwc: and Professor Hermann considers the two particles 
together. 

u Igitur consilii indicandi causa quum particular w'e et onwc 
conjunctivo consociantur, si deest dv, simpliciter enunciatur 



122 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

consilium ; si adjicitur, aliquid fortuita accedit, quasi dicas ut 
sit, si sit. In primis idoneus est ad hanc rem demonstrandam 
iEschyli locus in Choeph. 983. 

(.KTeivar avrov Ka\ kvkXm irapaaraZov 
(TTeyaarpoy dvdpuiv deiiia.0\ wg 'iSrj Trarrjp 

OV)£ OUfiOQi dXX' 6 TTaVT ETTOTTTEVtoV tcLBe 

"HXiog dvayva fxrjTpog epya rrjg sprig, 
tog av 7rapjjf jjlol fidprvg iv Viky] ttote, 
<t>g t6v(? iyto fj.ETrjXdov iv^Utog fiopov 
tov firjrpog. 
" Ostendite velamen, ut videat Sol, is ut miki, si forte, testis 
adsit in judicio. Nam expansum velamen Sol non potest non 
videre, judicium autem nondum ita certo imminet, ut tam con- 
fidenter de edendo testimonio loqui possit. Itaque tag tcfy dicit, 
quia hoc ipsum certo consequuturum intelligit ut videat Sol ; 
sed tog av fjidprvg waprj, quia id sic tantum vult, si opus aut 
necessarium sit. Ita tog sine av dictum invenitur apud eundem 
poetam S. ad Theb. 633. 

XO. nXvovrsg deoi Sucaiiog Xirdg 

ijxag ev teXoW tog 7roXig tvTvyr\, k. t. X. 

" Choeph. 733. 

A'Lyiardov f) Kparovaa rovg Isvovg kuXeIv 

oirtog Tartar dvioyEV, (og aa(p£ffr£pov 

dvijp aV dvfipug ttjv VEayysXTOv (party 

iXdiov TrvQr)Tai njvds* 
Pers. 694, Agam. 1302, Choeph. 765, 769, Eum. 616, 632, 
641, 774, Suppl. 328, 492. Cum particula av autem, 

" Prom. 8. 

roiaa^E rot 

dfiapriag a<p£ SeI Qsoig Zovvai SiKrjv' 
tog av ^ida^Or} rrjv Aide rvpavviZa 
GTEpyEiv, (piXavQptoxov $£ 7ravEa6ai rpoirov. 
" 705. 

(tv r 'Ivd^Eiov awipfxa rovg Ifiovg Xoyovg 
BvfMJj /3a'X' (og av TEpfiar EKjJiddrjg ohov. 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, (i>g, 'iva. ottojq, ETC. 123 

Choeph. 18. 

UvXdcrj (TTadtjjfiev EKwohiov, tog av aa(f)u)Q 

/jLciduJ yvvaiKdv rjriq rj()E irpoffrpoin]. 

11 554. Suppl. 502. 527. Omnibus his in locis, qui attendere 

voluerit, facile intelliget, cur vel addita vel omissa sit particula. 

Juvabit duo exempla ejusdem fonuae considerare. In Choeph. 

437. 

ifiaa^aXiadri £e y\ tog rocT tiSrJQ. 

" Debuit hie omitti av, quia sensus est, hoc te scire volo. Sed 

in Suppl. 937. 

'AAA' (t)Q TO$ tlSjJQ EVVETTli) (TatyEffTEpOV, 

patet hunc sensura esse, scias licet. Sic in Prometheo 823, 

CUm OTTbJC, 

oVwc o av eihrj fjiy fjtdrrjv xXvovad fiov. 

" Aristoph. Plut. 1 12. 

av o' u>q av EtcfJQ vera, nap' rjulv fjv fiiyjKt 
yEiii<TET dyada, irpoaEyE rov vovv lvu 7ru0j;. 

u Et 07rwc quidem sine av posuit iEschylus, Pers. 667. 

fidaKE TEpuiv aKUKE 
Aapct', lavoi. 
ottmq tcatvoKora nrXupe via t d\r), k. t. X. 
" Agam. 1656, Choeph. 873. Addita particula autem Choeph. 
578. 

vvv ovv av fXEV <pv\aff<TE rdv 6'tKy koXQq, 
07rwc av dpritcoXXa arvfjiftair)) race. 
" Eumen. 576. 

■rrXijpovuEvov yap tovce (jovXEvrrjptov 
ntydv dpijyEi, xa\ f.(a&E~iv dEfffiovg Eftovc, 
ttoXiv te izaaav eiq tov alavfj yporov, 
Kai rovb\ ottojq av ev Karayviotrdlj tt'o/. 
M 1033. Suppl. 841. 

" Saepe non multum interest, addaturne av, an omittatur 

Non est tamen dissimulandum, inveniri locos quosdam, in qui- 
bufl mirere additum esse dv. Quod etsi fortasse aliquando ne- 
gligentia quadam scriptorum factum est, tamen plerumc|ii< 
causa, cur addidcrint, potest inveniri." 



124 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

Professor Hermann proceeds to explain one or two diffi- 
cult passages, and to give a list of all the lines of Sophocles 
and Euripides in which we or 6Vwc occurs with or without dv. 
These, perhaps, it will not be necessary to transcribe. 
Enough has been said to give the learner an insight into 
the particle's force when added : what remains must be 
acquired by attention in reading. Perhaps tog or oVwg dv 
yevrjrai may be considered as pretty nearly equivalent to 
" if so be that it may take place," or " in order that, if so 
be, it may take place." If this translation be applied to 
the above quotations from iEschylus, it will, I think, be 
found suitable to those of them in which av is added to the 
particle of purpose, and not so to the rest. Of course, 
however, we shall sometimes find owg alone where oitojq av 
would have been admissible, just as the past aorist is found 
where the present or past-perfect (which convey all that the 
aorist conveys and something more) would have been more 
strictly accurate. The first meaning of tva is " where." 

Eurip. Bacch. 1378. 

' Aycr' w Tro^nroi fxe, Kaaiyvrjrag 

iva avjityvydhag X^ojxeff ohrpdg. 
" where we shall find,"— and with av, " wherever, whereso- 
ever." Soph. CEd. Col. 405. 

rovrov ydpiv roivvv at irpoadkoQai ireXag 
X<jjpag OeXovffL' pjtT iv dv aavrov apart) g. 
" and not to allow you to be wheresoever you are your own 
master." * 

Aristoph. Plut. 1151. 

7rarpig yap eari 7raV iv ctV irpdrrr) rig ev. 

Nub. 1232. 

Kat ravr edeXrjaeig aVo^oerat /j.01 rovg deovg, 
'tv av KeXEvaio 'yw as. 

" wheresoever I bid you." 

* See Professor Hermann's- note on the passage. 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, UJQ t Iva, 07TW£, ETC. 125 

Eurip. Ion. 315. 

dirav deov fioi ^w/u', IV ay \dj3r] \i vttvoq. 
The intermediate notion by which the two forces of <W, 
as a particle of place and of purpose, are linked together, 
seems to be nearly that conveyed by the English " whereby." 
e. g. Eurip. Hec. 26. 

KCll KTUVtOV EC olCfX fJ. d\uQ 

" whereby he may himself be having." 

As a particle of purpose, the use of fra differs from that 
of ottwc in two important point*. It is never combined with 
av nor found with the future indicative. Professor Her- 
mann has endeavoured to account for these peculiarities in 
the second book of his treatise already referred to.* 

The Attick prose writers rarely or never employ to 
denote a purpose, <Jc in combination with av. With them 
wq a?) which in the dramatists occurs so often in the sense 
of "in order that perchance— in order that if so be," is 
employed for " as so ever — according as." e.g. Plat. 
Sympos. 181, A. 

OVK eart tovtojv avro <ca0' avro KaXov oucev, a\V ev rp 
Trpd^et wq av irpa^dfj, rutovruv nW/3//. 

i. e. it becomes beautiful or not according to the manner in 
which it is acted. 

There is another usage of wq a* occurring in the dram- 
atists, the origin of which it seems very difficult to discover. 
The exact meaning has been controverted, but is perhaps 
best given in the words of Professor Hermann. u Est 
haec significatio particularum talis, ut non nuiltum ab 
eu)q diflferat." Examples of this usage are found, Soph. 
Aj. 1096. 

• Opuscula, iv. p. 136. 



126 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

TOV $£ GOV \p6(j>0V 



ovk av arpacpeirjv, wg av r/g oiog rcep el. 
" so long as you be." 
Philoct. 1313. 

Kal Travkav 'LaQi rrjgSe ^yittot ivrv^eiv 
votrov j3upelaQf (og av ovrog rjXiog 
ravrrj fiev a'tpy rrjSe & av dvvr) ttoXlv. 

Professor Hermann renders wg av " utcunque" in both 
passages. 

If the learner has carefully gone through the preceding 
observations, he will be the better for the following sum- 
mary of them ; if not, I warn him that he will most pro- 
bably be very much misled by it. 

f'lva where — whereby — in order that. 
-J oVwc bow — as — that — in order that. 
\wg as — how — so that. 

("Ira av wheresoever. 
07rwg av howsoever, as-so-ever ; — in order that perchance, in 

order that if so be. 
(og av as-so-ever — (in the poets) so that perchance, so 

that if so be — so long as. 

f am doing ^ 

• have done ' 
I { ,. , )■ it in order that this may take place. 

^was doing J 
rtva 

7re7roirjKa J 07r<ue av 

iirolrioa ■ (og 

enoiovv ojg av (in poetry) 

lo7rw£ yevrjaerat ravra. 



► yevrjrai ravra. 



lace. 



THE PARTICLES OF PURPOSE, u)Q, lya, OTTUQ, ETC. 127 

I -! ° > it in order that this might take ph 

'lya yevoiro ravra 

{yevoiro ravra 
oirwg-^ ykvryrai ravra 

{.yeyrjaerai ravra 



ETTUIOVV 

ETToir)<ra 



'lya yevrjrai ravra 

tog yeynrai ravra 

we q.v yiyrjrai ravra 2 poe try. J 

wg yevoiro ravra 



by the dramatick usage 
of the Attick writers. 



f Wouid tha, I had {lZ doing } it, i, order that this might have {^£% pU- 

i C ■ , ) "iva C , , 

l £7roir](ra { „ l tyevero ravra. 

\CtO \ , . C 07TUQ < , , 

v / ETTOiovv \ , ,. x I eyiyvero ravra. 

\. J (og (in poetry) I ' ' 



128 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 



"Av IN CONJUNCTION WITH irpiv AND eiog. 

These particles, as might have been expected, are used with 
an indicative, when the predication conveyed by the verb 
connected with them concerns something stated or supposed 
as actual, i.e. something conceived of as objective. Other- 
wise the optative or subjunctive must be employed, the choice 
between them being determined by considerations arising out 
of the natural inter-relation of the moods. Instead of any 
of the other moods the infinitive is also admissible, I shall 
first give one or two examples of the use with the indicative. 
Plat. Charmid. 155, B. 

ekclgtoq yap rj/jLuiv t(Jjv Kadrifjievtov IvyyupQv rov TrXrjtriov wdel 
ffirovdrj 'iva nap avru) Kade^otro, kcog tQv eV samara Kadrj/jiEvwv 
rov fiev dv etTT-q a ajxevy rov Ze irXayiov tears (3aXo fi£v. 

Phaedr. 266. A. 

6 fXEV TO eV do'lGTEpa TEflVOflEVOQ fJLEpOQ 7TaXlV TOVTO TE\XVU)V 

ovtc i7ravr)K£, Trpiv ev avrolg i^svpojv 6vofj.a%0fj.Evov GKaiov riva 
epwra iXoidoprj (te fidX' ev Siicrj. 

Ion, 541. E. 

a\X' drEyyuig JlffTTEp 6 UpioTEVQ TravrodaTrog yiyvsi vrpEcpo 
uEVog avio Kai icdru), £(oq teXevtcou dicupvyojv fx£ arparrjyog 
dvstyavrjg iva firj ETTidEi^rjg, K.r.X. 

There is a use of the indicative with these particles which 
it will be proper to explain, because at first sight it might 
seem at variance with the nature of that mood, as applicable 
only to what is conceived of as actually taking place, that is 
as objective. I mean the use found in passages such as 

Plat. Cratyl. 396. C. 

el d' ifji£fiqvfjr)v rrjv 'Hanodov yEVf.aXoytav rivag en rovg aVw- 
ripoj trpoyovovg XsyEi rovnov, ovk av £7rav6fjr)v dtE^ihjv wg opduig 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH Tplv AND eu)Q. 129 

avroig to. ovo^utu rcirat, ewe dirzir eipddrjp ri/c <ro(f>iag TuvT>]irt ri 
noirjaei. 

I believe this construction is to be explained by considering 
the dV to refer to the whole following sentence ; e< 2' fa/i- 
vt)ixr)v .... tovtiov being the protasis, and ovk av Eiravo^v 

ri TToirjaet the corresponding apodosis. This will 

appear more clearly by removing the condition and the par- 
ticle. We then have the simple assertion, ovk e-rravo^jv 

SuZtu)v w'c opBioq avToig to. oiofxara rctTtU, ewe dirtTretptidrjv, 

k.t.X. "it was not until I made trial that I was for 

ceasing from going through, etc." The proposition is 
changed from a categorical to a conditional, by the prefix of 
the particle dv, which is understood as applying to the whole 
of it. How this is, will be the more intelligible by consider- 
ing that the literal translation of ei c' lyLt^vi'i^r]v ovic 

ay eVavd/iijv SieZiwv big ttoe d-e7reipddr}v t %» r. X. 

is " if I remembered on this supposition I icas not 

for ceasing to until I made trial, etc." And there 

is really not the smallest grammatical reason for making any 
alteration in dirnrtipddT]v t when by the prefix of a* to enavofiTjy 
the categorical is converted into a conditional.* 

In an exactly similar way is to be 1 explained 

Plat. Gor?. .506. A. 

'AXXci per o), u) Topyiu, teal avroq rjceue /ueV av KaXXuXel 
Tovry en CteXeyo'/if/r, eu>£ avrtp rr\v rov 'A^0/ovoc aVtcwK-a 
pfjOtV dl'Tl, r. t. X. 

except that in this la*t sentence no particular condition is 
expressed or implied, and therefore citXtyo^v aw will best 
be rendered " I could with pleasure have gone on con- 
versing." 

The similarity between these and such passages as the 
following, has been already remarked in a little pamphlet, 

• See note (A) at the end of this treatise. 



130 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

idoloclastick of a certain very unsubstantial reputation for 
sound scholarship. 
Plat. Men. 86. D. 

'AW' el fxev eyio f]px o,/ > <*> Mskov, fxrj fxovov ijiavrov dXkd teal 
aov, ovk av icrKeypd/jieda npoTepov, eire dtdaKTOv sire 01 didctKrcv 
r) dperrj, irplv 6 ri earl Trp&rov e ^Ttjcrafiev avro. 

To which may be added as another example, 
lb. 84. C. 

Otei ovv av avrov irporepov ewi^eiprjffat (r]Teiv tf fiavdqveiv 
tovto o a)£TO eldevat ovk et^w'c, irplv elg dnopiav Karen eg ev 
^yriadfievoQ fjirj eldivai, ko.1 eiroBriae to elMvat. 

But I must venture, though with great diffidence, alto- 
gether to differ from the learned author of the pamphlet 
above alluded to, when he gives as a similar example, 

Demosth, in Leptin, 486. 

'Xpijv Toivvv AeTTTivrjv /Jirj Trporepov ridevat tov eavrov vofj.ov, 
7T p l v tovtov eXvare ypa^dfxevog. 

The absence of the conditional particle in this last sentence 
seems to me to make an entire difference between it and 
those above quoted from Plato. My own opinion is, that 
the substitution of eXvire for \vaai is a mere inaccuracy. 
The corresponding impropriety in English, " before he an- 
nulled," instead of " before annulling," is so common as to 
be almost the regular mode of expression. 

With the above passages may be compared also such as 

Plat. Charmid. 171. D. 

el yap y§ei 6 outypojv a re ydei Kal a jxt} y$ei dva- 

fidpTrjTOi av tov fiiov ^ie^wjuev avTol te Kal ot aWoi 

TrdvreQ, oooi v(f y/iuiv ijp-^ovTO. 

For the use of these particles, with or without dv. fol- 
lowed by the subjunctive, as I have nothing to add to, or 
remark upon Professor Hermann's observations, I shall give 
them in his own words :— 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH npiv AND Eug. 131 

" Sophocles Aj. 741. 

tov dvdp' U7rr]vca Tevxpog EV^odtv (Treyrjg 
/irj "Id) TraprjKEiv, np\v irapuiv avrog rv-^i]. 
" Significabat enim Teucer, se certo venturum esse. Simil- 
limus locus est in Trachiniis v. 604. 

didovg v£ rovhe, typd? onojr furjcelg (3pOTiHv 
keivov 7rapoidev d/j.(pihv(TETai \poi, 
fill?? uxpETal viv \Lr\Tt <piyyoQ -qXiov, 
fxrjd' epicog iepov, /irjr E(pE<TTtOv aiXag, 
irp\v keivoq avTOV (ftavepog ifjKpaviijg OTaQeig 
Seily Qtoi<TLV rifJiipq. Tavpoatydyu). 
" Et in Philocteta v. 917. 

fj.rj crTEva'Ce, 7rp\v fiddrjg. 
" Dicturus est enim Neoptolemus. Iterum in Ajace v. 964. 
ol yap tcaicoi yvwfiuiai, rdyaQov yepo'iv 
typvTEQ ovk 'irraai, npiv Tig cY/Ga'A?/. 
Noluit dicere xph> av, quod esset, priusquam forte amiserit, sed 
omisit oV, ut diceret, turn demum, quum amisit. Comparari 
potest cum his illud Autiphontis p. 619. (11. §. 29.) ol 5' 
etti(jOvXev6}ievoi ovcev 'iaaai T?p\v eV avru> tooi t<3 koxA y rj^rj, 
Kal yiyvw<TK(i)<Ti tov oXEdpov, fV o) Eiai. Quod eamdem habet 
rationem. Sic etiam in Trach. 945. 

ov yap Etrd ?; y avpiov, 
irp\v ev Trddrj Tig ttjv 7rapov<rav q/iEpav. 
" Similiter apud Euripidem in Oreste 1218. 
<pvXa<T<TE £', rjv rig, irp\v teXevt^BF) (povog, 
rj Iv/jfia-^og Tig r) tcaaiyvrjTog iraTpog 
eXOljv ig o'ixovg <pdfj. 
" Facturus est enim caedem Orestes. Et v. 1 354. 
omog 6 npa^dtlg (povog 
fxrj Seuov ' ' ApyEioiaiv ififidXri tyofiov 
fiorjhpofxfjaai irpog Zofiovg TvpavriKovg, 
irp\v ETvp.(j)g 'icco tov 'EXerac tyovov 
KaOaif-ianTOv ev fiofioig kei/jevov. 

k2 



132 THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE ai' 

" Etin Alcest. 851. 

ovk eotiv oqtlq avTOv itaipj] vetch 
fioyovvra nXEvpd, Trpiv yvvciiK ifuol fiedrj. 

" Cogitur enim reddere. Et in Iph. Aul. 538. 
kv juot (pvXatov, WeveXsiog, dvd arpardv 
iXdoiv, ottwq dv fj.rj KXvratfiprjarrpa rdde 
fxaQrf, Trpiv "AiZr\ 7rcu(T Ejjtrjv TrpogOuJ Xaj3<ov* 

"Aristoph. Ran. 1281. quum Bacchus, nolens amplius audire 
Euripidem, abiturum se dicit, ille his eum verbis manere jubet : 
/i?y, Trpiv y dicovariQ ydrepav arrdmv /jleXiSv, 

" lam enim cantaturus est. Eccles. 750. 
ov yap tov e/j.6v idpwra ical (pEtEojXiav 
Ovdey 7T(0O£ ETTOQ outojq dvor$TU)g a7ro/3aXw, 
TTpLV EKTTvdlOfJiai TVaV TO TTpdyfX OTTdJQ &X 61 ' 

"Ibidem v. 856- 

ov Srjr, r\v y ekeLvcliq vovq ivy, 
Trpiv KairEVEyKYiQ. 

" Ita scribendum. Vulgo Trpiv y d-KEvLyKyq. Brunckius ex 
uno cod. Trpiv y dv dizEVEyKr\q, Porsonus Trpiv dv, y dirEVEyicrjQ. 

" Acharn. 294. 

AI. dvri <T (x>v EGTCEi<jd\ir\v ova 'itrr et' ctXX' cuWoxtre. 

XO. aov y dtcov&iofXEV ; aVoXfT* mra as yj* )ao \ lEV TOt £ Xidoig. 

AI. jjLrfdajjLuJQ, Trpiv dv y dv:ovar\T' a'XX' dvdayEO§\ rftyadoi. 

" Sic Bentleius, Elmsleius, Reisigius. Libri fluctuant: alii 
irpiv dv aKovffrjTE, alii trpiv dv duovorjTE ye, alii Trpiv y dv 
aKovariTE, Ravennas vero et scholiastes, izpiv y aKovarjTE, sine 
dv, recte, quia jam dicturus est Dicaeopolis, ut nihil hie incerti 
sit. Sed metri indicio scribe, 

fir)dajjiojQ ye, Trpiv y dtcovtrrjT. 
" Caeterse lectiones debentur correctoribus. Quod si comparare 
quis volet exempla, in quibus Trpiv solum et wpiv dv apud 
tragicos et Aristophanem leguntur, quae sedulo notata dedit 
Elmsleius ad Medeam, p. 119, facile animadvertet, ubi dv ad- 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH irplv AND eiog. 183 

ditum est, semper aliquid incerti subesse. v. c. in Sophoclis 
'Axatwv (TvWoyo) ap. Athen. XV. p. 686. A. 

<popeire, fiaaaerio tlq, lyyeiTio fiadvv 
Kpr)T?ip' 6c 'dvrjp ov 7rp\v av (pdyy icaXidg, 
owoia Kai j3ovg ipyaTTfg, ipyd^erai. 
" Non est enim de praesenti tantum tempore loquutus, sed 
universe: hie homo non umquam ante, quam bene saturatus 
fuerit, laborat. Neque vero alium in prosa oratione usum 
obtinere consentaneum est. Recte Reisigius negat opus esse 
particula av in his Platonis de Legg. IX. p. 872. E. tov yap 
koivov uiavdevTog aluaTog out: eivai Kadapaiv dXXrjv, ovfie. e/vTrX- 
vtov ideXeiv yiyvetrdat to fitavdev, irpiv tpovov tp6vu>, ofjoitp 
OfAOtov, rj cpdaaaa ^"X^ no 7/' KfXl Traaqg rfjg t,vyyeveiag tov 
Ovfiov dyiXaaaptvri Koifiiay. At caussa non in gravitate et dig- 
nitate orationis qmerenda, sed in iis verbis, unde haec pendent : 
6 yap cr\ fjivOog 17 \6yog /; 6 tl ypi) Trpogayoptveiv avrov, ex 7ra- 
Xuilov Upewv e'iptiTai aa<piog } tog tJ twv Evyytviov aiudriov Tiuiopog 
£107 eviffKonoc v6f.iv xp/jfrat rJ vvv cij XexdevTi, Ka\ era^ev dpa 
ZpdaavTL tl toiovtov Ttadtlv raurd dvayKaitog airEp ecpavev. 
Nam quia necessario perpetienda esse eadem dicit, qua? quis 
fecerit, propterea -rrplv, ut in re certo consequutura, sine av 
posuit. Quamquam quis neget et hoc in loco, et multis in aliis, 
etiam np}v av dici potuisse? Nam, prouti rem consideres, saepe 
etiam quod certum est, alia ratione ut incertum proferri potest : 
ut hie, si non tarn illud, sequuturam esse poenam, quam earn 
aliquando, sed ut incertum sit quo tempore, sequuturam dicere 
volueris. Dubia est scriptura in Politico p. 281. D. aliis libris 
7rplv av, aliis Tp\v av praebentibus, quod non dixerim falsum esse. 
Non assentior Reisigio, in /Eschinis verbis av requirenti, c. 
Ctesiph. 22, 6. p. 447. (480. §. 60. Bekk.) 6rmg ov™ fcojeetrai, 
firjT a7royvLOTto uri^ev fJirjZe KaTayvcoTto, nplv aKovort] Verissima 
est enim librorum scriptura, quum statim dicturus sit orator 
ilia, qua? audiri vult : id quod apertissime declarant, quae se~ 
quuntur. 



134- THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE «v 

" Eadem plane ratio est particulse itog et similium. His quo- 
que, quoniam exiguum discrimen est et plerumque non magni 
refert utro modo quis loquatur, adjici fere solet av, praesertim 
a prosae orationis scriptoribus. Sed facile tamen sentias, esse 
ubi aptius omittatur. Ita jam moribundus quis recte diceret 
adstantibus amicis pi fivers eu>g Odvio, non item eioq dv ddvoj, 
quod potius ei conveniret, qui non ita propinquam sibi putaret 
mortem esse. Quare vereor ne, quod legitur in Rheso v. 613. 
6'<T syyvg rjarai kov avvrjdpoiffTai arpartp, 
a'XX' stcrog avrov tclIeojv kcltevvcktev 
"FjKrwp, 'iiog dv vvti, dpsiiprjrai (pdog, 
scribendum sit eioq av vvt, dpeixprirai <j>doQ. Sed afFeramus ex- 
empla. Sophocles Ajace v. 55k. 

iv rw (ppovslv yap prjhev rjdiffrog fiiog, 
e(oq to ya'ipsiv fccu to \vrrE~iaQai pddyg* 
" Omisit particulam, quia haac inevitabilis est hominum sors, 
ut discant quid gaudere sit et dolere. In eadem fabula v. 1 182. 
vpslg te pr} yvvalKEg dvr dvhpwv rcsXag 
TTpogkaTaT , aXX' dprfysT, sgr iyio /.joXw 
rd^ov psXrjdEig r<ode, fcav prjhslg id. 
" Dicit enim hoc Teucer asseverans se rediturum esse. Sic 
etiam CEd. Col. 77. 

avrov psv*, ovirep Kacpdvqg, twg iyio 
Tolg Evddi? avrov, prj tear darv drjpoTaig, 
Xei;w Tab* tXdiov. 
" Et in Philoct. 763. 

a'XXa pot tvi to!; eXiov 
rdh\ ulffiTEp ripov pH dpriiog, 'iojg dvfj 
to 7rrjfia tovto ttjq voaov to vvv irapov, 
craj^ avrd koi tyvXaaae. 
" Aristoph. Eq. 133. 

NI. Zvo tio()£ 7rwXa. Ka\ ti tovtov ypr\ trudelv ; 
AHM. tcparslv, Ewg erepog dvrjp fiSsXvpojrepog 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH irpiv AND ewg. 135 

avrov yevrjrai' fxerd Be ravr a.7r6\\vTai. 
einyiyveTai yap (3vp(T07ru)\rig 6 HcupXayuiv. 

" Sic ibi cod. Ven. nisi quod, ut vulgo, yevoiro, quod etsi 
defendi potest, tamen non praetulerim. Quod editum est eug 
av, metro repugnat, nee prodest sententiae, siquidem jam facto 
comprobatum est illud oraculum, florente populi studiis isto 
Paphlagone. Sophocles Trach. 147. 

a\\' ijcovalg dfio^Qov e^aipei (3iov 
eg rov6\ etjg Tig dvr\ irapfjevov yvvr) 
KXrjdijj Aa'/3>; r ev vvktX (ppovricivv pepog, 
tjtol irpog dvZpog rj tLkwv (j)OJJov/jLevrj. 
" Multo magis autem apta est haec ratio, ubi de re praesente, 
ideoque certa, sermo est. Homerus Iliad. \p. 4-6. 
eVft ov /u* en cevrepov wde 
1i,er aypg KpaBirjv, 6<ppa £u>ot<Ti fiereiio. 
" Sophocles Electra v. 223. 

aA\ ev yap oeivolg ov ayr)au) 
ravrag arar, 
otypa pe fitog ex[l- 
"Euripides Oreste v. 237.(231. Pors.) 
dxove cij rvv, a) Kaalyvrirov tcdpa, 
eiog euiffi a ev cppovelv 'Epivvveg. 

"Quamquam hie quidem etiam indicativus esse potest. Con- 
tra vide illud in Soph. CEd. Rege S3 1. 

ij/uiv fuv, wra;', ravr OKvijp'' ewg 5' av ovv 
irpog tov TTupovrog eKfjddiig, e^' iXiru'a. 

" Incertum est enim, an sit auditurus ille. Sed nemo non videt 
etsi omittitur dv in re certa designanda, tamen multa esse ita 
comparata, ut non sint necessario pro certis vel incertis affe- 
renda. Itaque non mirum est, si aliquando etiam incerta ut 
certa, saepe autem certa ut incerta proferuntur. Prouti enim 
consideres, hanc vel aliam speciem habebunt. Ita quod ex 
Electra Sophoclis attulimus, in eadem fabula v. 103. cum par- 
ticula ov dictum est : 



136 THE ATTICK USE Of THE PARTICLE dv 

aXX' ov fiev fir) Xrj^b) Oprjvwv 
arvyepiov re youv, 
egr dv TrajuKpeyyeiQ atrrpiov 
pnrdg, Xevaau) Be rod' r)jxap. 
*' Et apud Euripidem Alcest. 337. 

o'icrio he ttevQoq ovk irt]ffiov rode, 
aXX' egr av alwv ovjxoq dvre\nrj % yvvai. 
"Exempla aperte incertse rei per dv significatae cum parti^ 
culis donee vel usquedum vel quamdiu significantibus vide apud 
Sophoclem Aj. 1117. CEd. Col. 114. apud Euripidem Hippol. 
659. Ale. 1024. Cycl. 623. apud Aristophanem Nub. 1460. 
1489, Ach. 235/* 

The following summary of the use of -rrplv may be conve- 
nient. 

iiroir)<ra ravra wplv y Ke ev * a ?' i antequam jubebas. 

ovk rjdeXov 7roifjaai ravra ttoXv < • x ~ \ an tequam juberes. 

ov 7roiriffu)\ . ~ , A - 

, ' > ravra 7tpiv ae KeXevcrau 

7r0ll)(T(i) ) 

ov 7roir)ffU) ravra npiv q.v KeXevffrjg. 

, ~ s \ KeXevaeiQ. priusquam iubebis. 7 

7roinau) ravra irpiv I * . , r • • i_ L • r 

' r [av KeXevaeiag. priusquam jubere potens. J 

(seldom found). 

irplv av is not used unless a negative, or something equi- 
valent, precedes. Of irplv with the optative, Ellendt writes 
(Lex. Sophocl.) " cum optativo non aliter nisi in obliqua 
oratione legitur, et vel ita, ut dicta sensave alicujus ipsa 
memorentur aut ex mente alicujus pendeat optativus ille ex- 
plendae sentential principali adhibita secundaria constitutus." 
This rule indeed is quite in agreement with the nature of 
the mood. 

I have spoken already of the strangely misleading system 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH 7Tph> AND e(OQ. 137 

of tense-nomenclature adopted in the common grammars. 
Nowhere, perhaps, is its absurdity more manifest than in 
its application to the dependent moods. The optative can 
never refer to time present, nor the subjunctive to time past, 
and yet the grammar talks gravely of a present optative, and 
an aorist (by which it means — or at least allows very many of 
its readers to mean — a past) subjunctive. The nomenclature 
of the moods, if less absurd and mischievous than that of the 
tenses, is yet not greatly to be commended. The indicative, 
I. e. mood of declaration, is continually used where no de- 
claration is made — in interrogations, for example, and in 
conditionals. The optative has very many uses with which 
the expression of a wish has no concern, and has, moreover, 
quite as good a claim to the name of subjunctive as belongs 
to the form by which that title has been exclusively assumed. 
Every state, whether of action, suffering, or being, is con- 
ceived of with or without reference to some subject thereof, 
determinate or the contrary : if without such reference, the 
word expressive of it is an infinitive, — if with the reference, 
it is a finite verb. The conception conveyed by a finite verb 
may be entertained by the mind, either objectively or sub- 
jectively — either as of an actual existence, or merely an 
existence thought of. To conceive of a thing as an actual 
existence, it is not at all necessary, be it observed, to believe 
or declare that it actually exists ; it is enough that the mind 
chooses to assume such existence in determining the form in 
which it will present to itself the object of its own contem- 
plation. To make my meaning clearer by examples, el ytv-q- 
aiTaL is " if it shall actually come to be — assuming that it 
will really and objectively take place;" idv yivriTui is, "if 
peradventure it should come to be," in which there is no 
assumption at all that ever actually it will be. In like 
manner, 



138 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE CLV 

Soph. (Ed. R. 1074. 

jirj 'k rfjg ffLionrjg r^scT dvapprj E,et KaKci 
is to be translated, " I fear that she will, — that there will be 
an actual giving vent to, etc." 
Eurip. Bacch. 367. 

TLevdsvg cT oTTiog fir} ttevQoq eiffoiffei Sofiotg 
role erolffi, KaS/jie, k. r. X. 

" Sic est dictum," writes Professor Hermann, " ut cogi- 
tetur, illatum iri luctum a Pentheo, ac proinde videndum esse, 
quomodo id irritum reddendum sit." Perhaps in English, 
the difference between elffoiffei and elffcpepy may be preserved, 
by rendering the former " that he shall not," the latter 
11 that he may not." 

I have already * given a table of the objective verbal 
forms, marking those possessed by the Greek language. The 
subjective mood, under which name I would include what 
are commonly termed the optative and subjunctive, is very 
fully supplied, except in so far as one set of forms serves for 
reference to present and future time, — an arrangement how- 
ever which will not, I think, on consideration, appear in- 
convenient. The infinitive possesses perfect, imperfect, and 
aoristick forms not referring in particular to time past, pre- 
sent, or future, and moreover an aorist referring exclusively 
to time future, with respect to that of the conception de- 
noted by the principal verb The annexed table will give 
this whole classification at one view, marking at the same 
time what forms are deficient in the Greek language. 

Before quitting the subject, it may be proper briefly to 
explain some uses of the optative, in accordance with what 
has been above said of its nature. And first, of the expres- 
sion of a wish by means of it. 

* Above, p. 7. 



(p. 13 Si 



Finite 



Verbal Fermsi 



Definite 



Objective 



Present ZuirVfo. 
Impe rfect < Past &€lttvovv. 
Future deficient. 

Present fafcim'nKa. 
Perfect Past (dedartvtjK)/. 

Future, deficient. 



! Present -deficient. 
Past (?((7Tif/(ra. 
Future rti'Kvyjaut. 



Present <>r\ 

Imperfect Future 

Past 

Ylt Or i 



bfim 



Definitk 



Suh'ectun 



( (fKVotnv. 



?<einrvtJKu>. 



Perfect (Future 

Past tacvfJKWfu. 



Infinitive 



Definite 



Aoristick 



(Present or I 
., HKvrjcn* 

tutun 
Past foannjtratfu. 

Imperfect deasvtw. 

Pe i -fct -I bebernvr/Kivai. 

Indeterminate bcncvmrmt. 



Future 



ccnzvtjanv. 



N<>! having formal reference to ;< subject. 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH TTplv AND tug. 139 

Than a mere wish, nothing can be further removed from 
a conception of the thing wished for as in actual objective 
existence. A subjective form is accordingly employed for 
its conveyance. That the optative is preferred to the sub- 
junctive may be probably explained by considering that 
the former does not, and the latter, setting forth from the 
present as a ground, does contain an implication of the 
possible objective realization of the subjective conception. 
This may perhaps appear the more probable from noting 
that in the corresponding English forms " may I but effect 
it," implies the hope, and therefore the possibility, that it 
will actually be effected; while "might I but effect it" 
has in it, formally at least, only the pure wish. 

Another use of the optative, which it may be well to men- 
tion, is in what is called the oratio obliqua. The subject- 
matter of all our conceptions must be the phenomena either 
of matter or of mind. Sometimes, however, a part of these 
is conceived of not directly, but, like a picture within a 
picture, as a portion of the conceptions of another. We 
assert that in the conception or belief of another * such a 
thing takes or took place, or is conceived of, thus and thus. 
In this case, if the conception so formed has reference to 
time past, the verb conveying the predication of it may be 
of the optative form, when otherwise the indicative or 
dramatick subjunctive must have been employed. 

Lys. in A go rat. 180. 

fierd ce ruvra QrjpcifjiErrig eirifiovXevwv rw rrXrjQei t<5 vfxerepa) 
chaardg Xeyei, on idi> avroi' tXjjade ire.pl ri]c eipijirjQ 7rpe<rjjevTijv 
avTo^pdropa, irotrjaeL ware ^'/~£ rwi' TelyCiv cteXeiv, /u/frc aXXo 
-i}\> ~6\iv iXa-TuJaai /ji]cey' o'ioiro ce (and he thought, he said) 
teal oXXo rt dya&ov irupd Xaxthatfiovluv Trj iroXei evpriaeaBai. 

* Or of ourselves considered a? our own objects. 



14-0 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

Aristoph. Nub. 144. 

'Avrjper apri Xaipetyuivra JjOJKpdrrjg 

\pvXXav, oiToaovQ dXXoiTO Tovg avTrjg ttoSciq. 

Soph. Trach. 681. 

Kai /jlol ratT r}v npoppriTa, /cat rotavr elptx)v% 

TO (JHXpfXClKOV TOVT CLTTVpOV 



ev ixvydiQ (riofetv ifxe, 

eiog dv dpTi^piaTOv dpfioaai/xi nov. 

Philoctet. 547. 

e<)o'£e fxoi jjirj alya, irplv (ppdaaifii cot, 
tov ttXovv iroieiodai, k. t. X. 

lb. 610. 

Kai rav0' oKiog riKOva 6 AaipTov tokoq 
tov fxdvTiv elirovT, evOlwg vTviayero 
Toy dvZp 'A^atoig Tovhs SrjXojcreiv dyiov' 
o'iolto [lev jua'XtcQ' ekovo'mjjq Xa/3u)v' 
el fit] dtXot ft, dtcovTa' k t.\. 

Lys. Agorat. 25. 

icJeovTO dvTov ttclvtI Tpoirto direXQeiv 'AdijyrjBev, Kai avTOt 
etyaaav ovvEKTrXEWEioQai, eiog ra irpdyfiaTa fcaraorutrj. 

Plat. Charmid. 164, A. 

a'XXa Xiye el Soke! ri col larpog vyid Tivd 7roiuiv oJ^iXifxa 
Kai iavTui ttoieiv Kai ekeivo) ov Iu)t o. 

lb. 156, A. 

OpTl <T rjlTOpOVV, TIVL TpOTTO) (701 £ V B £ I £ CI t fl 7] V Tl]v hvvafllV 

avTrjg. 

lb. 155, E. 

oijuoq $£ avTOv, eptOTtjaavTog si ett larai \xv\v to rrjg Ke<f>aXrjg 
<pdpfiaKov, fioyig nojg d-KEKpivafi-qv oti i it iot a I fir) v to rrjg 
KEtyaXiJQ (pdpfiaKov. fioyig 7riog dir£Kpivdjj.r]v oti £7r iffrai jitjv, 
ti ovv, rj <T 0£, eoti ; Ka\ iyio eIttov oti avTO fiev sir} (j>vXX6v 
n, E7ro)^rj hi Tig ettI t<5 (papfiaKf e'irf, jjiV eI fiev Tig eirySot a/ja 
Kai XP&TO avToj TcavTairaoiv vyid ttoioI to <pdpfiaKov' avev he 
Tfjg e7ru)()rjg ovdev b(f)£Xog e'lrj tov tyvXXov. 

The passage quoted from Charmid. 164, A. is opposed 
to what has been said of the reference to past time as ne- 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH TTpir AND "wc. Hi 

cessary to the optative in the ratio obliqua. I believe it to 
be, strictly speaking, inaccurate.* The English remains at 
least intelligible, if we preserve the inaccuracy and trans- 
late, " tell me if you think that a physician in making one 
whole is doing any benefit both to himself and to him whom 
he was healing." The reference, moreover, is not to the 
moment actually present, but to that indefinite time which 
does indeed most naturally occur to our minds as present, 
but not so necessarily and exclusively as to prevent the 
Athenians, as we have already seen, from continually mak- 
ing use of a past aorist for its conveyance. 

Here may be noticed what is termed by Dobree f the 
correspondence of one optative to another. How this takes 
place will perhaps be best learned from Elmsley's note on 
Soph. Aj. 1217, to which Dobree refers. 

"v. 1217. Teiolfiai' Xv vkaev eireari ttovtov \ Trp6p\i)fjL u\i- 
kKvctov, aKpav J vtto 7rXaka Sovriov, | rug tepdg o7ru)Q 7rpo<X£t7rot^£V 
'AflaVac. Omni/io cum Jo/uisouo lef/cnihim est npoatiTrotf* ay. 
Heath. Brunck has adopted this emendation, taking the 
credit of it to himself, according to his usual practice. Bothe, 
Lobeck, Schaefer, and Erfurdt also read npoaf.iiruif.1 ay. We 
wish that one of these seven critics had pointed out the fault 
of the common reading. We will not allow ourselves to sup- 
pose, that any person to whom the language of the tragedians 
is familiar, can object to the transition from the singular 
yevol/iav to the plural irpoadiroiiiev. We are equally unwilling 
to suppose, that so many learned men were offended by the use 
of the optative Trpo(T£i7roifiev instead of the subjunctive Trpovei- 
Tw/ifv. Compare Phil. 321. Qv^lov yeroiro X u P l n^Vpucrui 7TOTE, 
"Iv eu ~MvKfjvat yroitr, i] ^irdprr) Q\ on Xij ?,KvpoQ dicpiov 

• On the subject of such inaccuracies as that here supposed, the reader 
will find a few lines in note (B), at the end of this treatise. 

t Adversaria, II. p. 265. 



142 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av 

dXrifiiov firjrnp etyv. Alexis apud Athen. p. 34-0. C. sirtvas 
fiaXXov (f)i\(jj jEJ£vovg eripovg vfiuiv, yevoljjirjv ey^eXvg, "Iva KaX- 
Xifiehuv 6 Kdpafiog 7rpiair6 fie. So also Aristoph. A v. 1337. 
Tevoifxav alerog v\pnr£Tag, [ ojg av 7roTadeirjv J virep drpvyirov \ 
yXavnag iir olfyza Xifjtvag. We give these lines as they are 
written in Brunck's membrance and the Ravenna manuscript. 
According to the Scholiast, they are taken from the GEnomaus 
of Sophocles. As we do not believe that an Attic writer, even 
in a choral Ode, would have prefixed u>g av to the optative in 
the sense of 'iva, we suspect that the passage in question is 
borrowed from Simonides, or one of the other lyric poets. 
Admitting, however, wg av 7roradeir)v to be a genuine Atticism, 
and to signify ut volar em, it will not justify oirug Tzpoad-woi^i 
av in the passage before us, although it might justify oVwe av 
TrpoGeiTroifii. When the particles ojg av or oiriog dv signify in 
order that, they must not be separated by the verb which they 
govern. See Eurip. Iph. A. 171. with the remark of the 
Quarterly Reviewer, vol. VII. p. 455. If all the copies read 
TTpoffeiTroifjL av, we would propose TrpoaeiTroijitv without hesi- 
tation," 

A literal translation would make the use of the optative 
in most of these passages appear very simple. We say in 
English either " may it but happen to me to satiate my 
wrath, that so Mycenae may know, etc." in which some 
degree of hope is involved, or " might it but happen .... 
so that Mycenae might know, etc." which conveys a pure 
wish. The Athenians always make use of the latter mode 
of expression in the former part of the sentence, and there- 
fore, most naturally, frequently also in the latter. Thus 
the passage from Alexis is literally rendered, " might 
become an eel that Callimedon might buy me." In Aristoph. 
Av. 1337, perhaps «Jg might be translatedybr or since, 
and the particle be taken with the verb "might I become 
an eagle, for I would fly, etc" It is surely a loose way of 



IN CONJUNCTION WITH wptv AND cwc 143 

talking to say with Dobree, on " JSsch. Suppl. 902, K\$oig 
av el xpavaeiag, i.e. k\civ<tei el \Lavcreig, ut e praecedenti liquet." 
The lines are, 

KH. ciyotfx av, e'i Tig TtiffCe fii) ^aiprjaerai. 
BA. ^Xaoig oiv el \pavaeiag ov /jct/V eg fiak-pdv. 

that is, " you would smart for it if you were to touch ;" 
\pavaei would be " if you shall touch:" the use of the op- 
tative implies that the king does not choose to contemplate 
the herald's daring to lay hands upon the suppliants as an 
actual possibility, but merely declares what would happen 
if such a thing were to occur. There is at any rate a mani- 
fest difference in English between " you shall suffer for it 
if you lay hands on them," and " you should suffer for it 
if you were to lay hands on them." 



144 THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE dv. 

NOTE (A). 
THE VALUE OF iiroirftra av. 

It is maintained, I find, by some resident members of this 
University, of whose opinions I have no right to speak without 
great deference, that k-Koi^azv aV is never " he would do " but 
always "he would have done." In other words, it is asserted 
that in the form to which £-Koir\(rzv dv belongs, the predication 
conveyed by the verb must always have reference to time past. 
I shall consider this question in the full manner best suited to 
the class of readers for whom I am writing. 

First, it is to be observed, that whatever translation be given 
for eTvoirjaa av must, at all events, be, not a literal rendering of 
the Greek, but the giving of some English expression, most 
nearly corresponding, in compensation thereof. Fecissem is 
properly a conditional, " I should have done it," but e7roir)<ra av 
is the simple indicative, with the addition of the particle, ava 
tovto iirolrjora " in this case, upon this supposition I did it." So 
l-Koiow dv, literally rendered, is not " I should be doing it," or 
" I should have been doing it," but, dvd tovto inoiovv " on 
this supposition I was doing," or " was for doing it." And ei 
7rpoff{jX6ev 6 KXeuivvfWQ e.iroir)aa dv is not " if Cleonymus had 
come I should have done it," but " if Cleonymus came, dvd 
tovto e-TToirjaa on that supposition I did it," or Ittoiow " I was 
doing it." — The Greek tongue then has no conditional verbal 
form ; but in order to declare that had a certain condition been 
fulfilled, a certain consequence would at some past time have 
ensued, it declares formally that, assuming the antecedent, it 
did ensue, by insertion of a particle which is understood to im- 
ply, not that any actual taking place is asserted, but merely the 
fact of a particular condition's having been an antecedent to 
which a particular occurrence was attached as consequent. Now 



THE VALUE OF tiroi/jaii UV. 

If, iiistead of saying that "had A taken place B would (i.e. at 
some past time) have taken place," we wish to say that " had A 
taken place B would now be taking place," analogy would lead 
us to write el TrpoafjXder 6 KXeojvvf.io£ ravr av toko, i. e. aVci 
tovto 7roud " on this supposition I am doing." But this sort of 
phraseology, with its formal assertion of that as actually now 
taking place which it is meant to be implied, does not take place 
at all, would in most casts seem much too strong. For this 
reason perhaps it is, that in place of " I am doing," the Greek 
uses the past-imperfect "I was doing." It appears then that 
for " if I had done so I should not have been ill," the Greeks 
said "if I did so, on this supposition I was not ill" il ravr 
eiroiqtra ovk av fjpfjwaTijaa, and for " I should not be ill, 1 should 
not now be in a state of illness" they said ovk av r\ppu>oTovv % 
this latter expression also serving to convoy " I should not at 
some past time have been in a state of illness." Hitherto, there- 
fore, we have nowhere found any need for the introduction of 
the past-aorist into the apodosis. when reference is had to pro 
sent time. I proceed next, to point out in what case this net «I 
doet arise. And first let me draw the reader's attention to the 
difference between the three following expressions : 

(1.) If Cleonymus were to come I should not do thus. 
ei eXOoi 6 KXtuJwjjioe ovx tti ravra 7roiTJaatfjii. 

( c 2.) If Cleonymus had come I should not have done thus 
ft TTpoarjXdtr 6 KXewi'VfAoi: ovk av itroirjaa. 

(3.) If Cleonymus had come I should not now be doing thus. 
ft TrpoaijXdev 6 KXewvv/Jog ov\ «r ltoiovv. 

Entirely different from all of which is 

1.) If Cleonymus had come I should not do thus, — wherein 

en-oiow would be improper, because there is no reference to the 

time during which the doing is in progress : what more natural 

then, than to employ the tense which stands in the same relation 

* See above, Chap. i. It must be observed that such sentences, though in 
power conditionals, are in form categoricals. 



146 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE lir. 

to iiroiow as does *' I should do " to " I should be doing "— and 
this tense is eVotrjca. 

It is true that el 7rpo<rrj\dev 6 KXeww/jloq ovV av ETroirjaa, 
literally, " if Cleonymus came, on this supposition I did it not " 
seems unsuitable as an equivalent to " I should not do it:" but 
this use of the past aorist may be classed with those noticed 
above,* in which the Greek having no present-aoristick makes 
use of a past-aoristick in preference to a present-imperfect. If 
we translate "many things happen unexpectedly" by 7ro\X« 
7rapd yviofjirjv ettege, is it not reasonable to suppose that " if this 
had come to pass many things would happen " will be correctly 
rendered by it ravd' ovtojq iyevsro noWd irapd yvoifj-rfv av 
e7T£(TE ? At all events, if this is not a corresponding translation, 
the Greek language supplies no such translation at all. We 
must, as I have before observed, inevitably give not a literal 
rendering, but a compensation ; and surely " would happen " is 
manifestly a proper compensation for the force of a* e-kzve in 
an expression like that supposed. We have 

ttoieiv to be doing, izoir^aai to do ; 

E7roLovp I was doing, iiroiricra I did : 

iroLolfiL may I be doing, Troirjaaifjii may I do ; 

Troioifx uv I should be doing, -Koir\aai^ av I should do. 

iVa 7toio«jui that I might be doing, tva Troirjaai/M that I might do ; 
irroiovv av I should have been doing, eVo/^cra av I should have done ; 
ETToiovv av 1 should be doing, exoirjaa av I should do. 

Why should not the members of this last pair have to one 
another the same relation which is acknowledged between those 
of all the others ? 

I have now, I hope, shown sufficiently that there is nothing in 
the nature of the Greek expression to prevent us from translating 
on occasion eVo/r^cra av " I should do." It remains to adduce 
examples in which the sense of the context makes this translation 

* Seep. 31, foil. 



THE VALUE OF ETroiijau uv. 147 

appropriate. That such examples are not numerous will hardly 
occasion any surprise, after what we have already seen of the 
manner in which the Greek language affects the use of imperfect 
forms. 

Plat. Sympos. 199. C. 

i.61 ovv fxoi Trepi JLpioroQ, eireiCr) Kat raXXu kuXujc icai fxtyu- 
\07rpt7rdjg SirjXdeg olog tern, kui rode elire' norepov eari roiovrog, 
olog elvui rivog 6 "JLpwg epojg, i) ovfievog ; epwrui <T ovV", el 

/jU]rpog rivog r) -rrarpog eari — yeXolov yelp dXX uairep av 

el avro tovto, Trarepa, rjpojrivv, apa 6 Trar-qp iart nurrip rivog 
rj ov; t It eg a v Srjrrov fuoi, el efiovXov K.a\(Jg drroKpivuoQai, 
on eanv vleog ye rj dvyarpoc 6 Turrjp rrurrjp' rj ov ; 

"if I were asking you you would say, I suppose, if you 

wished to give a good answer, etc' 

lb. 215. D. 

eyioy ovv, u) uvCpeg, ti ^tj epeXXov KOfAtdjj coleiv (.ttdveiv, 
el ir o v ouoauc uv vfj~tv ohi ctj ireirovtiu uvroc .vtto riiov rov- 
tov Xoyiov. 

" were it not that I should seem to be quite drunk I would teU you, 
and make oath of it, what sort of treatment truly I have myself re- 
ceived, etc," 

Gorg. 44-7. C. 

20. H Xuipetyoiv, epov uvrov. XAl. Ti tpujfiut; 211. bang 
eari. XAl. IlcJe Xeyeig ; 211. "Clavep uv el irvy^avev u>v 
V7roCr]fiarii)v Crjfjuovpyoc, tin e k p i v a r u uv cijrrov aot, on 
(TKVTOTOfuog. rj ov fjuvbuveig o>c Xeyio ; 

" Just as he would if he were an artificer of shoes, — he would reply 
to you, I suppose, etc." 

lb. 453. C. 

(TK07ret yap, el aot ooku> Ci^uiwc uvtpwruv at. uJanep uv ti 
ervy-^avov ae epioruiv rig ian tujv £u)ypu(f)U)v Zev&g, el fioi 
etneg, on 6 rd £<Ja yputpojv, ap ovk av ZiKuiujg ae rjpofirjv 

ra 7ro~ia nov (u)wv ypatyiov kui rrov ; 

" For see whether I seem to be justly questioning you, just a.s 

1 should if I were asking you if you told me should I not ash 

you justly, etc." 

l2 



]+8 THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

lb. 514. D. 

Ovkovv ovtu) Trdvra, rd re aXXa, Kav el eiriyeiprioavTeg hrjfxo- 
vteveiv TrapEKaXovfxev dWrfkovg iog IkuvoI iarpol ovTeg, eVec/cei//- 
afj.eda dr/nov av iy<o re ere ical <rv ipe, k.t.X. 

" If we were inviting one another should we not investigate, 

etc." 

Euthyph. 12. D. 

Opa crj to fjierd tovto. el yap fxepoc to ocriov rov diKcuov, 
del or) nfidg tog koticev e^evpelv to ttoIov fiepog dv e'Lr) tov SiKaiov 
to baiov. el fxev ovv av fie rjpoiTag tl tQ>v vvv drj, olov 7ro~iov 
jJiepog earlv dptd/xov to apTtov ko\ e'nrov dv oti, k.t.X. 

" If you were asking me (which you are not) I should sat/, 

etc." 

If this be not a correct translation, I ask how the English 
which I have given could be rendered into Greek. 

Soph. Antig. 755. 

el fir) TraTrjo rjad' e'nrov av a ovk evtypovelv. 
" I should say." 

For other examples, see Matthiae, Gr. (Jr. 508* 
It is true that elrrov dv may also be rendered " I should have 
said," and so in all the other passages referred to. But this is 
manifestly no proof that the translation here given is incorrect, 
from the simple consideration that in every such occurrence of 
" should" or " would," " should have" and "would have" may be 
substituted for them. Since, then, analogy would lead us to 
expect that e\oir\aa dv would sometimes be rendered " I should 
do," and there are actually passages found, in which this ren- 
dering agrees best with the sense to be conveyed, I conceive the 
correctness of it to be sufficiently made out, especially as the 
paucity of examples wherein it takes place, is perfectly intelli- 
gible from the known character of the language in which they 
occur. 



THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE at. 14-9 



NOTE (B). 

In the third chapter of the foregoing paper, I have laid it down 
that <lv is not to be joined with a future. It may seem pre- 
sumptuous that I should have pronounced thus summarily on 
a question so much debated, and on which, moreover, Goller, 
Stalbaum, Poppo, and others hold an opinion quite contrary to 
that which I have given. But I was writing to guide the prac- 
tice of learners. In none of the scholars just mentioned could 
I find any explanation of the doctrine held by them, and, as far 
as I was myself able to judge, the probabilities it priori were 
altogether against the usage. Hartuog, indeed, in his treatise 
on the use of ar t maintains its correctness, and explains the 
exact meaning of the ] n which it occurs. For example, 

Burip. Androm. 164. 

ovCi~(jr fT(ii»£(Tw /3oora>>' 

.pounded to be " I shall never be in the case in which 1 shall 
praise, be placed in the condition to approve of" (" Ich nie in 
den Fall Kommen, Die veranlasst and in den Stand gesetz wer- 
den, eine Vermablung mit zwei Frauen gut iu heissen)." But 
such explanations can establish nothing. If they are correct, 
one cannot but be surprised that so few instances are found to 
which they can apply, especially among a people " qui amant 
omnia dubitantius loqui." With this paucity of examples, the 
tion can be decided only by some one possessed of a very 
nice and subtle perception of what an Athenian could or could 
not have said. In the absence of such a decision* I should 
prefer to suppose that the passages in which ay is found with 

Hermann and Porson, as referred to in Mr. T. K. Arnold's excellent 
Greek Exercise Book, are both against the union of a» with the future. And 
who can be more competent to gave an authoritative opinion in luch a case ? 



150 THE ATTICK USE OF THE PARTICLE av. 

a future, where not corrupt, are inaccurate. What seems to 
strengthen this view, is the non-occurrence, noticed by Dawes, 
of the particle in combination with the future optative.* As, 
however, I foresee that many will object to this method of 
getting over a difficulty, by calling the construction in which it 
is found an inaccuracy, I shall endeavour to lessen the apparent 
improbability of an Attick writer's having been guilty of 
solcecism, by citing a few cases of like transgression from 
classick authors of our own country. 

"Nor is it easy to conceive that, in substituting the manners of 
Persia to those of Rome, he was actuated by vanity." — Gibbon. 

" The landlord was quite unfurnished of every kind of provision." — 
Sheridan's life of Swift. 

" Nor is mankind so much to blame, in his choice determining 
him."— Swift. 

" By this institution, each legion, to whom a certain portion of 
auxiliaries was allotted, contained within itself every species of lighter 
troops and of missile weapons." — Gibbon. 

" The Bishop of Clogher intends to call on you this morning, as 
well as your humble servant, in my return from Chapel Izzard." — 
Addison tp Swift. 

' ; The sun upon the calmest sea, 

Appears not half so bright as thee." — Prior. 

" Tell the cardinal that I understand poetry better than him," 
[meaning better than he does]. — Smollet. 

" I have set down the names of several gentlemen, who have been 

* So far as J have observed, the sole use of this form is in the oratio obli- 
qua, where in the oratio recta the future indicative must have been employed. 
If this remark be well founded it may be substituted for Dawes' "temporibus 
praeteritis significatione futura semper subjici," which is at all events but an 
awkward way of explaining such passages as — 

Equitt. 771. 

\prjjULaTa ttXeIct' (iTrtSei^a 
ov (ppowrl^wv twv idicoTvov ouoVvos, si <rol -^apioiuriv. 
Or Lys. Agorat. 137. 

o-TpaTriywv oV "Ai/utos itrl &v\ijv ovk sipti X9^ v(tL •••• «^« v *> v ^ fJ/ 

Of.il/ .... 7.1 OF TTOTf 0iK<L8e. K<XTc\QoLfV, TOTt KO.I T IflOO p 1)0-0 I vt o toi's 

dftiKovvTa';. 



THE ATT1CK USE OF THE PARTICLE civ. 151 

robbed in Dublin streets, for these three years past." [Meaning 
" within these three years."] — Swift. 

" The greatest masters of critical learning differ among one another.'" 
— Spectator. 

" But no evidence is admitted in the house of lords, this being a 
distinct jurisdiction, which differs it considerably from these instances." 
— Blacks tone. 

" It were well for the insurgents and fortunate for the king, if the 
blood that was now shed, had been thought a sufficient expiation for 
the offence." — Goldsmith. 

" Was man like his maker for wisdom and goodness, I should be 
for allowing this great model." — Addison. 

" The people of England may congratulate to themselves that the 
nature of our government and the clemency our king secure us." — 
Dry den. 

" Such of my readers as have a taste of fine writing." — Addison. 

" Tho' learn'd, well-bred; and tho' well-bred, sincere: 
Modestly bold, and humanly severe." — Pope. 

" I do not think that leisure of life and tranquillity of mind, which 
fortune and your own wisdom has given you, could be better em- 
ployed." — Swift. 

" Those who he thought true to his party. "w Clarendon. 

" If you please to employ your thoughts on that subject, you 
iconld easily conceive the miserable condition many of us are in." — 
Steele. 

To these instances of inaccuracy, selected from among many 
given in Dr. Crombie's " Etymology and Syntax," may be 
added that one of so frequent occurrence, exemplified in — 

" And that deep silence was unbroke, 

Save when the watch his signal spoke." — Byron. 
And in — 

" I slew him, I — I ha.d fonjut, 
Thou stripling knew'st not of the plot." — Scott. 



152 THE ATTIC K USE OF THE PARTICLE dr 



NOTE (C). 

When two words combine into a single meaning, each is said 
to be construed with the other ; and when the combination of 
any number of words constitutes a single meaning, each is said 
to be construed with all the rest, taken collectively, but not 
with each individual word of the combination : e. g. in eXeyov av 
" I should say," aV is construed with eXeyov ; but in og av Xeyrj 
av is construed with og, not with Xeyrj (og av "whoever"), 
for av Xeyrj is destitute of meaning. But we may say that og 
av, taken together, is construed with Xeyrj. 

The particles av and kev, introducing the notion of condition- 
ally or contingency, must always be in connection with a verb 
expressed or understood ; and as all verbal forms may have this 
notion annexed, we should have looked to find these particles 
construed with all of them. The actual usage, however, at least of 
such writers as flourished after the language had become regular, 
is more restricted. "Av is construed with the indicative, opta- 
tive, infinitive, and participle— never with the subjunctive. We 
cannot say e. g. Xeyrj av ; and in the common expressions og «V 
Xeyrj, orav Xeyrj, edv Xeyy, and the like, the particle modifies, 
not the verb, but the preceding relative : it is with the relative 
that it combines into a single meaning, and with the relative 
must be taken to be construed. Not then av, but its combi- 
nation with the preceding word is correctly said to be construed 
with the conjunctive; for og av Xeyrj "whoever speaks," is a 
single meaning, and so is og av " whoever," but aV Xeyrj com- 
bines into no meaning at all. That the av belongs to the pre- 
ceding word is still further apparent from its so often coalescing 
therewith, e. g. el av, edv \ ore civ, orav; iireuv; eireiddv ; and, 
in Dorick writers, at/ca, oiaca,-— as well as from the constant inter- 
collocation of the words, always og dv Xeyrj, never og Xeyrj civ. 



OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 



" Si quis ad accuratam Graecarum literarum scientiam aspirat, is probabilem 
sibi accentuuin noiitiam quain maiurrime comparet." — Porsou. 

Introduction. 

* As the principal word of a sentence, so also the most 
important syllable of a word, is marked by a peculiar stress 
of the voice. This stress is in the former case termed em- 
phasis — in the latter, accent. 

All words therefore, not monosyllabick, must in every 
language possess accent, but a necessity for its indication by 
symbols as a guide to pronunciation, exists, of course, only 
in dead languages. In the case of Greek, in this country 
at least, the prevailing system of pronunciation has rendered 
the symbols u>cless for all purposes 'except that of distin- 
guishing between words which differ in meaning, but agree 
in orthography. 

In every word there can be but one predominant tone to 
which all the others are subordinate This is acute accent, 
and is indicated by a stroke drawn downwards towards the 
left {'), e.g. KOf.ifuu. In comparison with the one thus 
marked, the other syllables have a depressed tone, grave 
accent, marked by a stroke drawn towards the right ( v ) : this 
latter, however, except in one case, is not indicated in 
writing, e.g. <p\ai, not <pv\d£,. 

* The following rules for accentuation have been compiled from various 
sources. They might easily have been extended, but I wished, in giving 
them, to keep in view the word which I have, in the motto, taken the liberty 
of italiciziue. 



154- OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 

Every syllable, whether vowei or diphthong, long by 
nature, is considered as made up of two short ones, e.g. 
$)]\oq is equivalent to fceXog. If the former of these would 
in the resolved form have the acute, in the contracted form 
this accent coalesces with the grave on the latter syllable, 
and forms the circumflex, e. g. UeXog, SrjXog— which, it thus 
appears, can be found only upon a syllable long by nature. 
If on the contrary the acute stood originally over the latter 
of the short syllables, the preceding grave vanishes altoge- 
ther in the coalition, and the acute alone remains. 

Words which have the acute on the ult. are termed oxyton. 

— . penult. . paroxyton. 

antepenult. proparoxyton. 



circumflex on the ult. perispomena. 

penult. . properispomena. 



The grave accent is seen only on the last syllable of 
oxytons standing in continued discourse, e.g. dvjp, dyadog, 
but dvrjp dyadog ov (pevyei. This change is rendered ne- 
cessary by the intimate connexion of the words which would 
be interrupted by the sharp pronunciation of the acute accent 
at the end of any of them ; and therefore does not take 
place before a period or colon, or even a comma followed by 
a sufficient pause. 

It has been observed, that as emphasis points out the 
most important word of a sentence, so does accent the most 
important syllable of a word. In primitive words, there- 
fore, the radical syllable will also be the accented syllable, 
e. g. <piXog, Xoyog, \ei7ru). 

In words derived from others either by a prefix or an 
affix, the accent usually rests upon the supplemental part 
(because this, as the sign of distinction from the radical 
word, defines the notion), e. g. Xoyog — ciXoyog ; nap-nog — evKap- 
TToc ; Brip — Brjpioy. So in English, land — woodland ; dog— 
ban-dog. 



OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 155 

I. General Rule of Accentuation. 

Count from the end of the word three times, and place 
the accent on the last of the three, if there be one, — if not, 
the second or first, as the case may admit. If the word 
terminate in a trochee, omit the last syllable, and count as 
before. The first time of a syllable long by nature, will, 
if the accent fall upon it, be circumflexed. 

Obs. A short vowel is counted as one time ; a syllable long 
by nature, being equivalent to two shorts, as two times. 

Final at and 01 are considered short, except in 

(a) Contracted syllables, e. g. A;/ro7. 

(i) Optatives, e.g. 7roiT)<rai, ('i-rroi. 

(c) Some few adverbs, e. g. niKm.* 



II. Of the Accentuation- of Verbs. 

Verbs follow the general rule, except in the following 
cases : — 

(1) Infinitives of the 1st aor. active, perf. pass, (with its 
participle), and 2nd aor. middle, with all those which termi- 
nate in pat (except the original infinitive Tvirri^iyui) have the 
accent On the penult., e.g. <pi\rjoai, iiratve<rat, rv<)>drji>aL, rt- 
rv<pdai, Ttrvfifievog, XadeaOtu. 

(2) The infinitive and participle of the 2nd aor. active, 
the 2nd person sing, of the 2nd aor. imperat. middle f 
(except in compounds), the 1st and 2nd aor. subjunct. pas- 
sive, and participles (oxyton always) in sic, ug, ag (except 
in the 1st aor. ), ovg, and vg, have their ult. accented, e. <*. 

\afieh>j Xopwj , \a/3ov, \r}<f>deig, etXri^uic, XrjcpOdJ-rjg-fj-uifjiev, etc. 
vpoayei'ov, ettiXciOov, iardg, dt^ovg, hiiKivg. 

* To distinguish it from o\koi In 

t And active in the words tltri, i\Bt, evpi, Hi, \nftt, being uncompounded. 



156 OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 

(3) All Attick futures, and those of the form termed 
the 2nd future, are penspomena, e. g. reXdH, j3a\w, copw. 

(4) In verbs compounded with prepositions the temporal 
augment retains its accent after composition, e. g. avr\TtTov, 
izpoatiyov. 

(5) Monosyllables, being oxyton, are, after composition, 
paroxyton, e.g. enrobe, eWcr^e; but if perispomenon, they 
preserve their accent, e.g. a.7roSdi, except 7rapciax<*>> /caraVxw, 
etc., from <r^. 

(6) There are some other variations from the rule, e. g, 
Xprj, eyj)i)v, \PV V > i<* v * napujv, etc., which may be learned by 
observation. 

III. Of the Accentuation of Novns. 

( 1 ) The termination of the genitive and dative, when long 
and accented, is always circumflexed. 

Except 

The genitive sing, in words of the Attick 2nd., eg. vew. 

(2) In the 1st declension the genit. plur. is always peris- 
pomenon, e. g\ fxovadjv, veaviutv. 

Except 

(°0 XP^ ffTU}}/ > ETrjaritov, dtyvuV) yXovvuv. 

(b) the fem, plur. of adjectives and participles when the 
same with the masculine, e. g. rdv dXXior yvvaiKuv. 

(3) Monosyllabick nouns of the 3d accent the ult. of 
the genitive and dative, e g. <ppevog, (ppevi, <ppevo~w, (ppevuv, 
typtoL* 

Except 

(a) participles, e. g. devroQ, ovtoq. 

(b) the plur. of 7rde, e.g. wdpTvv. 

* This rule applies also to nouns which suffer syncope, e.g. dvSpl, 7r«T,cui'v, 
Pvyarpos ; hut we have Ajh/Ojt-jOos. 



OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 157 

(c) certain words which have become monosyllabick by con- 
traction, e. g. fipog, k'rjpog. 

(d) these following genitives plur. (with their duals), waiSwv, 
Tpoidjv, Sfjutiiov, (piorojv, duxM, <j)u)dii)v, dq.fi<i)V, ojTioy, crew, Kpdrwv. 

(4) Subject to the limitation of the two preceding rules, 
it is laid down that nouns, so far as is possible, keep tbe 
accent throughout on the syllable whereon it falls in the 
nominative, e.g. Xdyoc, \6yov, \dyw> &C, kopul, KopciKog K-opaich 
but, from the necessity of the case, kopdkior. 

(5) Pures * of the 3d in evc>t w e> w, and many in vc, are 
oxyton, e.g. fiaaiXevg, 'AxiWevq, aldoic, rj-^w, \ir\vQ. 

(6) Mutes in p and k sounds are always, if possible, 
accented on the penult, e.g. avXa'i, tepaii, k-rjpv^ <poivi£,, 
\al\ct\p, &C 

(7) Of mutes in t sounds, those in T and are commonly 
accented on the penult., tho*e in c (except epig and feminines 
such as c£<T7rdr(t) on the ult. 

(8) In nouns compounded of two or more words, that 
word is accentuated which denotes the agent, e. g. 

Qeotokoc, God-bearing. [xijrpoKTuroc a matricide. 

BtoTOKov God-born. fjtrjrpukToi'oc slain by a mother 

otuivooxoVoc a bird-seer. alnoXog a goat- herd. 
dloLTtopoq a way-wanderer. 
Except compounds of e\io, e.g. alyio\oc, 'nnroftoroe, and some 
others. 

(9) When the ult. is elided, oxylons, if indeclinable, lose 
their accent ; if declinable they throw it back as an acute 
upon the penult, e.g. W ifiuv, but Ulv en-adov. 

• i.e. words the case-root, or that which remains when the terminal syl- 
lable of the genitive is removed, of which ends with a vowel, 
f Vocative tv, e. g. fiacriXtv. 



158 OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 

IV. Accentuation of Pronouns. 

(1) The personal pronouns throughout their cases take an 
accent on the last syllable, which in contractions will be a circum- 
flex. But a<pi<n is paroxyton ; and in poetry we have ^fuiv and 
vfjuv when the pronouns are enclitick .* The demonstrative 
pronouns, ovrog, exelvog, oh, take their accent on the penult. 
The relative og is regular, as are its compounds oorie, oWe/o. 

(2) The possessive pronouns belonging to the singular 
number are oxyton, the others are regular; thus we have if/og, 
iog, but vu)'iTepog, acperepog, jj/jETepog. 

(3) The reflective pronoun avrog, and its derivatives, e/javrov, 
creavTov, eavrov, are accented on the final. 

(4) The interrogative rig, and the indefinite hlg, take their 
accent on the penult throughout. The compounds of Tig are 
regular, oorte, ovrig, fjLrjrtg. 

(5) The demonstrative pronouns take their accent on the 
penult, iicelvog, oSe, ovrog ; as also do the words analogous to 
them, not pronouns, roaog, oaog, oironog, noaog interrogative, 
Toiog, oiog, oirdlog, -rroiog interrogative, -rrrjXiKog, TrjXUog, rjXUog, 
07rr)\ih:oc, roaoade, rotoarhe, rrjXiKOffds, roiovrog, roarovrog, rrjXiKovrog, 

TVVVOVTOg, 

(6) But iroiog and iroadg take their accent on the final, as 
does Tig indefinite, when it is prevented from transmitting its 
accent by having a paroxyton word before it. 

(7) Ovv attached to a pronoun receives the circumflex ; com- 
pounds with 7T£jo follow the accent of the other member ; thus we 
have SffTicrovv, oaTrep, dtirep, alirep, w^Ep, oitnrep ; as also oBe 

On these principles the student will easily see the accentuation of 
eyio ijjiov tfiol ifxe v<j> vwv r\\iE~ig r\\x(i>v rffjuv rj/Jtdg. 
(tv aov (TOi at \ (T<pu) a(po)v v/Jieig v/jliov vfxiv v/xag. 
ov ov ol £ <70£ <T(plv o<pE~tg Gty&v ff(pi(7i atycig. 

oog ffov orto aov auj aolv aol crwv ao~ig aovg. 

0%E TOVCE Ttods TOV^E Tto()E TO~tV^E o'IBe ~<JJvSe TO~KtSe TOV<T$E> 

• See Ellendt, Lex. Soph. s. v. lyu>. 
t Enclitick. See below, p. 160. 



OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 1.39 



V. Accentuation of Adverbs and Prepositions. 

(1) Adverbs derived, by changing v into c, from the 
genitive plural of nouns in oe, nearly always retain the 
accent of their primitive, e.g. 

[JlOVOQ, H<)VU)V, flOVUtC, 
KttXoQj KClKuiv, KaXdJQ. 

(2) Adverbs in lov and an are always ox y ton, e.g. irapa- 
aradoy, 'EWrjviari ; 

Except evIov. 

(3) Dissyllabick prepositions when placed before the case 
they govern, are always oxyton; when placed after it, always 
paroxyton. 

Except 

(a) clyd and cid, which arc always oxyton. 

(b) airo in the sense of " away from." 

(c) when used for verbs, e.g. -rrdpa for irdpean, tin for 'Lireon. 

VI. Atari icks. 

The following have no accent : 

o, jj, of, at (of the article). 
etc, e& ek iv (but ZvL), tl (if), w'c, (as), 
ov, owe, ov-% (but o^t). 
But a»c for ourwf, or, when placed after the principal 
word, for " as," e.g. deds uq. So ov or ovk when the de- 
nial is direct, like the English " no," or when placed after 
the verb negatived. 

VII. Encliticks. 

(l) Sometimes a word occurs in such close connection with 
a little word following it, that both are pronounced as one : 
ttciti)p fxov, pronounced 7rarj]pfxov, tralpog t\q, pronounced 



1(50 OF GREEK ACCENTUATION 

eralpotrrig. By this circumstance various changes in accentua- 
tion are occasioned. 

(2) In order better to comprehend these changes, let us de- 
nominate the acute and circumflex over the foremost syllables on 
which they can rest, the fore-accent, — over the final syllable, the 
hind-accent. The acute over the penult may, therefore, be 
named the middle-accent. 

Fore-accent, Middle-accent, Hind-accent. 

arvXXoyog, avXXoyov, kaXog, 

KTJlTOe, KTJ7TOV, Ka\ov. 

(3) The little words alluded to, are the following pronouns: 
fxov, jJLoi, fxe, aov, vol, <re. ov, ol, e, jutV, viv, cr(p(v, acbwe, a<pw'iy, 
(Tcpeojv, a(f)iaiv, (reply, acj>iag ; the indefinite pronoun rig. ri, some 
one (always written with the grave accent to distinguish it from 
rig, ri, who?), the present indie of el/nt and <pr)fii (except etc, 
thou art, and <pyc. thou sayest) ; lastly, the adverbs and par- 
ticles 7T&Q, 7TW. 7T77 , 7TOt, 7TOV, TTodl, 7To6eV, 7TOTE, TE, TOl, ye, KEY, 

vuv, rrep, pa. 

(■4) These words throw back their accent, as an acute, upon 
the preceding word (eytcXivovai, fiopia iyKXirifcd, particular en- 
cliticai), when this word is marked by the fore-accent : dvdpu)-6g 
rig, aCjfxd fxov ; except when it ends with a double consonant : 
6p.rfXii /J.ov. KciTrf\i\p eari- 

(5) They lose it altogether, when the preceding word has the 
hinder-accent. Instead of KaXog tic, tcaXov nvog, write KaXog 
rig, koXov rivog. 

Obs. — The accent upon KaXos cannot remain grave, since Ka\6<s rts 
is to be pronounced as one word (KaXdo-Tis). Hence, also, <rtSfid fiov 
(properly awp-dnov) and avdpwiros t*s. 

(6) If a word with the middle-accent precede, the encliticks 
equally lose their accent, except when they are dissyllabich : 
avcipa re, QiXog fxov ; but r\v Xoyog irore, evavriog trtyioiv. 

Obs.— The syllables M (different from &', but) and -06 occur only 
in composition, and always as enclitick, ofe, iftfs, sWe m Similar to the 
accent of these words is that of owns, e!t«, um, where the accent of 



OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 161 

the enclitick falls back upon the monosyllabick baryton. Compare 

also oo-ris, -oivvv, //rot, &C. 

7- The personal pronouns lose the nature of encliticks after a 
preposition : dvri <tov, npog ai ; and instead of jxov, fioi pe, we 
must then write efxov, efxoi, e/*c. Also, kart merely draws back 
its accent, eon, when it expresses more than the simple copula, 
and answers to the Latin existere : dzug etrrty, tnnv ovtojc ; this 
occurs even after toneless particles, et, ot/V, w'c, with which it is 
joined in that signification, ovk egtiv ovrve, ti tortv Kadug 
Xiytig, and after the apostrophized tovto and dXXd, tovt eortr, 
a'XX' ear iv. 

3 When several encliticks stand together, each throws its 
accent back on the preceding : ei rig rira (prjai fxoi irapEivat. 

9. Exemplification of the foregoing remarks : 
'Rtti gov. elg ce, <pi\og rivdir. KaAtt rivd fioi ovvtpyov 0/Xov re, 
a'XX' ovk e\dpnv Ttva. To cu>\xd //oi/ vuXXiaroY toi Zai/uovoc 
rivog fieydXov enrh- oiKijfia. 

Additional Rules. 

Oxyton are 

(1) Verbals in roc, e.g. dnparur. 

(2) Compounds of izouiVy dyew, ovpuc t tpyor,* ybttv and 
the root irny. e.y. davfxaroiroiog, \o\uyog, wuXovpog, xaXtcovpyog, 
rpayucog, dpfxaroirqyog. 

(3) Adjectives in rjg, tcpog, oroc, i)\og> rjpog, u>\og, vog, itcog, 
(denoting capability,) e. g. vetcpog, eIcootoCi irortjpdg, aiyrjXog, 
a/zaorwXdc, docpaXrjg, dvarpEirTiKog. 

(4) Nouns, derived from verbs, in r), a, or rqg (of the 

* " It is to be remarked, that words compounded with *pyo are oxytone 
when they signify a bodily action, thus we have Xidovpyo's, ytcopyos, etc. : but 
proparoxytone, or, by contraction, properispome, when they denote merely an 
operation or habit of the mind ; and thus we have iravovpyos, iravrovpyos, 
etc. Exceptions to this rule are found in padiovpyos, Xi-rovpyo?, Xiwpyo's, 
which last is a synonym of Xirovpyos, and derived from Xsok, not from Xlws, 
as Hermann suggests (ud Soph. Aniig. 1261.)" — New Cralylus, p. 393. 



162 OF GREEK ACCENTUATION. 

1st); aoc; and eog of the 2nd); and ag-afiog, e.g. Trpoatyopdy 
vKOftovr}, 7roi.T)Tris, Xaog, icovXeog, 6eog. 

(5) eVra, oktio, itcarov. 

Paroxyton are 

(1) Diminutives in imcoc and, being trisyllabick and dac- 
tylick, in toy, e.g. a^r\KiaKog, irailiov. 

(2) Adverbs in cucig and tKa,e.g. oXiydiag. 

(3) Verbals in eog 

(4) Adjectives in rieig, w^c> and vXog. 

(5) ivvea, and [ivpiot, (for " numberless/') 

But to most of these rules for oxytons and paroxytons there 
are exceptions. Especially compound adjectives in r)g (not so 
frequently those derived from compounds) often retract the ac- 
cent to the penult. 

Adjectives in mog, derived from substantives, are prope- 
rispom., e.g. yf.vvoubg, 'Adrjvaiog, but iraXawg, from ndXai. 

Except Skaiog, and fiiatog. 

Compounds of yeXwg are always proparoxyton, e.g.fiXo- 
yeXu>g. This accent must be explained, like that of ttoXcwc, 
noXeojv, by supposing the last two syllables to have been 
pronounced as one. 

Observe : 

vofxog, law. vonog, pasture ground. 

Xovrpov, bath water. Xovrpov, a bath. 

fiiog, life. fiiog, a bow. 

dfjfxog, people. fyfiog, fat. 

ftporog, gore. flporog, a mortal. 

Ov/Aog, thyme. dvfxog, the soul. 



fit] AND jir) OV WITH THE INFINITIVE. 



163 



fit] AND jxr) ov WITH THK INFINITIVE. 

* (From Professor Hermann on Viger.) 

Ae^ot/v-a d-n-odayely, metuo mori, indicates dread of death. 

Ae'dot/oi p) d7rodav£~iv, metuo non mori, indicates fear of being 
prevented from dying. 

But since the Greeks, after words and expressions which 
have a negative object,* very often repeat the negation, we 
find also such expressions as UIolko. ^rj dirodaveiv equivalent 
to SiZoim fir) diroddvio, i.e. metuo non mori. On examina- 
tion, however, the exact meanings of these forms of expres- 
sion seem to differ in the following manner : 

(a) de^oiKa dnoQavtiv conveys simply the general sentiment^ 
I fear death, metuo mori. 

(b) Z&oiKCL fjLTj aTroOaveiv expresses the same sentiment as 
directed towards a particular object ; indicates fear of death as 
now impending, just as Ithouca fir) aTroddvu), metuo ne moriar. 

Similarly, 

(a) deBouca fxr] dwodaveli', metuo non mori. 

(/3) SeSoiko. /ut) ovk d-KoQaveiv, metuo ne non mortar. 

It is probable that a Grecian speaker would have marked 
the difference between (6) and (a) by a stronger emphasis 
on the negative particle in the latter case. 

From those the object of which is negative, must be 
carefully distinguished such expressions as have an affirma- 
tive object, but are negatived by the adjunction of a negative 
particle, or otherwise, e. g. dlvvaroQ elfxi, ov\ oioq re el/j.i 9 
and the like. Here the seemingly redundant prj of (b) is 
inadmissible ; but when the part of the sentence containing 

* Those words are said to have a negative object which point to the 
negation, omission, or non-fulfilment of some action ; such words e. g. as 
SldoiKa, EvXafiovfiai, dpvovfxai, &C. 

M 2 



164 firj AND flij ov WITH THE INFINITIVE. 

the affirmative object of the principal verb, itself contains 
a negative, e.g. ov\ ol6 Q r ' elfxl fir] Xiynv, if the negation is 
absolute and decided, fir] alone is used, as in the example 
just given, which can be translated only, non possum yon 
dicere. So, 

jEsch. P. V. 106. 

aXX ovre ffiyaiv ovte fir] aiyq.v Tvyaq 
olov re fjioi ravd' eariv. 
"nee tacere nee non tacere hanc sortem possum." 
If the negation is dubitative, or less decisive, w ov is 
used, e.g. Xeil. Cyneg. V. 31. eariv ovv dBvvarov fir] ovk 
eivai, eV toiovtojv '£,vvr)pfioafievov, "urxypov, vypov, vTcepe\a<ppov, 

here the assertion is less positive and unqualified, " it is 
impossible that the hare, so constituted, should be other than 
strong, agile, etc." (Xen. Hellen. v. 4, 32). eVet ekeivoq ye 

irpdg airavraQ oaoiQ hieikeKTai, ravra Ae'yft, fir] dZuceiv fiev 
E^ofyx'av dlvvarov eivai, — fir] alone, because the historian 
speaks positively and decidedly (certe et definite); " that 
Sphodrias is not unjust is an impossibility." (Xen. Mem. S.) 
efiol Be tL cuo^odv, to erepovg firj ZvvaaQat 7rep\ ifxov rd Bluata 
fx-qre yvwvai fx.r\re Troirjaai ; mihi vero nuiii turpe est, si alii 
nequeunt justi erga me esse, the fact that others are in- 
capable, etc., fir] ov could no more be used than could, 
for the expression of the same sentiment in Latin, mihi num 
turpe est nisi alii justi erga me esse possunt. 

To return to words implying a negative object. If these 
be themselves negatived, either directly by the adjunction 
of a negative particle, or implicitly by means of an inter- 
rogation, three modes of expression are found conveying 
substantially the same meaning, e.g. non nego ita esse may 
be translated into Greek, 

(a) ovk dpvovfiai ovtcjq tlvai, or 

(/3) — fir] ovtwq eivai, or 

(y) fir] ovx °v™£ £lyai (much most frequent,) 



fJtj AND /.irj OV WITH THE INFINITIVE. 165 

These three forms however are not precisely equivalent, 
but appear when accurately translated to be thus dis- 
tinguished. 

(a) is simple assertion— non nego ita esse, / do not deny that 
is so. 

(/3) is by much the most positive and decided of the three — 
contendo ita esse, it is so and I do not deny it. 

(y) is the least unqualified and positive form— non nego quin 
ita sit, I do not deny but it may be so. 

Soph. Antig 448. 

Kal (prifii dpdaai kov/c dirapvovixat to fxi). 

lb. Aj. 96. 

KOfxiroQ irdptaTi kovk a.Trapvov}ia.i to fjirj. 

The poet could hardly with propriety have written /j/j ov 
in either of these passages, since to have done so would 
make the expression dubitative and indecisive, whereas the 
sense requires it to be positive and absolute. 

Plat. Men. 89. D. 

ro /jlev yap SidaKTOv avWo that, irnrep eViorij/urj iot'iv, ovk 
dvaridefjiat fxrj ov KaXws \eyea6ai. 

Soph. Antig. 96. 

Treiaofxai yap ov 
tooovtov ovliv toare fur] ov KaXuii Oapeip. 
" nihil mini tale accidet quominus honeste moriar," to make 
me die otherwise than honourably, ware ^q raA*>£ Oavdv would 
contain indeed the same sentiment, but more strongly expressed, 
" nihil mihi tale accidet ut turpiter moriar." The death of dis- 
honour, nothing that can happen to me will ever bring me to that. 



FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 



REMARKS UPON CERTAIN PASSAGES OF THE NEW 
CRATYLUS. 

" The results of all that writers on the philosophy of 
mind have collected, with regard to our thoughts and the 
constitution of our intellectual powers, may easily be summed 
up so far as they accord with our own convictions. Every 
man has one primary belief, — that he exists, and that there 
is something without him full of realities animate and in- 
animate 



" The knowledge of his own existence, and the simul- 
taneous belief in an external world, this is the first act of 



" Man is, and the world is; there is a here and a there, 
a me and a not-me : the knowledge of this fact is conscious- 
ness 

"Now if language be, as we say it is, the genuine pro- 
duct of the reason, we should expect to find traces of all 
these conformations of the mind in the structure of our 
speech. And so it is. 

" Our analysis of the Greek and cognate language has 
taught us that there are two primary elements of speech : 



A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 167 

the first an organizing element which enters into all words, 
and which we call a pronoun ; the second, a material 
element which constitutes the basis of all significant terms 
which are not pronouns. The pronoun expresses in the 
first instance the relation of the thinking being to the ex- 
ternal world, of the subject to the object, of the me to the 
not-me ; and this is formally put as an opposition of here to 
there. The first general and vague idea of there is soon 
split up into a number of modifications, of which the first is 
a distinction of objects in the there or outward world, ac- 
cording as they are nearer to or farther from the subject, 
and subsequently a designation of all the different directions 
in which they stand with regard to the subject. The pro- 
noun therefore in its different forms is an expression of the 
first great fact of consciousness, that we are, and that there 
is a something without us." * 

" It is reasonable to suppose that the primitive pronouns 
would be designations of here and there, of the subject and 
object as contrasted and opposed one to another. As soon 
as language became a medium of communication between 
two speaking persons (and it is not important to consider it 
before it arrives at this point), a threefold distinction would 
at once arise between the here or subject, the there or object, 
and the person spoken to or considered as a subject in himself, 
though an object in regard to the speaker. We find traces 
in the Indo-Germanic languages of an application of the 
three first consonant sounds belonging to this family of lan- 
guages, namely the three tenues, to denote these three 
positions of here, near to the here, and there, or first, second, 
and third pronouns, as they are generally called. These 
tenues, articulated with the usual short vowel, are the three 

* " The New Crntylus," pp. 57—59. 



168 A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 

pronominal elements pa (found in ita-pd, etc.), ka (found in 
ice, etc.), and ta (to, etc.)" * 

In here inserting this paper, my object has been not so 
much to notice what seemed to me a mischievous confu- 
sion of distinct notions in Mr. Donaldson's statements, as, in 
doing so, to give, in accordance with my title-line, a first 
lesson in psychology to learners hitherto altogether unac- 
quainted therewith. It was necessary therefore to give the 
foregoing extracts at length, if I hoped to be intelligible to 
those for whom I was writing. For the sake of the same 
readers I must add, before proceeding further, that Fa is 
the usual representation of the original guttural ka, which 
Mr. Donaldson, as quoted above, gives as the second pro- 
nominal element ; and that ta-va is the form to which 
philological researches have been conducted as the earliest 
vocal expression of the second person thou or thee, the va 
being a variation of the original tenuis pa, by a difference 
similar to that between vater, father, and pater, between 
baron and the Spanish varon, and the like. So that ta-va 
is literally there-here, or it-me. 

The confusion of notions with which I seem to find in 
Mr. Donaldson is involved in the last of the foregoing 
quotations from his work. It recurs frequently, and 
is stated in so many words in the " New Cratylus," 
p. 305, "from the second [pronominal stem] in its two 
forms Fa and ta-va, we have," &c. Here, as often else- 
where, we find Mr. Donaldson identifying the general notion 
of objective nearness, with the peculiar connection between 
the subject speaking and the subject spoken to. In other 
words, he identifies the second personal pronoun with the 
second (it would, surely, have been far better to call it the 

* New Cratylus, p. 153. 



A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 169 

third) pronominal or positional element — an element with 
which it has no connexion whatever, either psychological 
or etymological, as I hope, in a few lines' consideration, to 
make abundantly manifest. 

When it was first suggested, as above quoted, by Mr. 
Donaldson, I was inclined to smile at the notion of con- 
sidering language at a point earlier than that at which it 
" became a medium of communication between two speak- 
ing persons." Now, however, it seems to me that the 
learned author's error (if indeed I am right in considering 
it as such) has been in a great degree owing to, or rather 
is a natural consequence of, his having neglected this ul- 
terior investigation. Certainly, as there are in each of the 
" two speaking persons" certain intuitions antecedent to 
their meeting, it seems but natural to expect that an ex- 
amination into the vocal elements also by which these are 
expressed, should have to ascend above the era of inter- 
communication. This I shall now attempt to do, and so 
to set forth for the learner as clearly as I can the successive 
origin, or rather drawing forth into the light of conscious- 
ness, of these primary intuitions. 

First, then, come forth the notions of here and there, 
arising out of the primary intuition of space, and immedi- 
ately suggested for distinct consciousness by the occurrence 
of an object here and objects there, that is, of the me and 
the its. Immediately after, and rather coordinate with 
than arising out of the two former notions, occurs that of 
the near* that is, of course, objective nearness (for the 
idea of subjectivity has never yet been awakened), and from 

* I think every one will, on reflection, recognise the near as distinct from, 
and not a mere modification of the there, however it may, in the commence- 
ment of thought, have been confused therewith under a common name. 



170 A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 

the vocal element (ka, ga, Fa), indicative of this objective 
nearness, come naturally enough, at a later period, recipro- 
cals, relatives, interrogatives, aud indefinites. The subject 
cannot indeed avoid a feeling of difference between itself 
and the objects or its around ; but finding itself here while 
they are all there, it has hitherto been content to accept this 
as the sole distinction, to call itself the here, and them the 
there, and seek no farther. How then does the subject first 
become distinctly conscious of its own subjectivity ? the 
case is, I believe, the same with this as with other ideas. 
They lie hidden within the recesses of the soul until the 
occurrence of an object, in what way soever, corresponding 
to them, and are then seen themselves by, as it were, the 
reflection therefrom of their own light, just as we might 
suppose a lamp to be for ever pouring its rays into the dark 
unconscious of their brightness, until from some fitting 
object they should be back reflected to their source. The 
subject then becomes possessed of the idea of subjectivity, 
and thereafter distinctly conscious of his own subjectivity 
by meeting with another subject, by having, that is, sub- 
jectivity presented to him as an object. In most cases, 
probably, the awakening of the idea commences with the 
first interchange of glances with another's eye. 

The man finds, to his perplexity, somewhat among the 
there presenting a strange approach to identity with the 
here. Heretofore he had been content to find in the con- 
trast of there and here the entire of that vast difference which 
he could not but be conscious of between himself and the 
its around him. Now, however, he has met with somewhat 
which, as he feels, differs from these its even as he himself 
differs ; and yet it is not here* but there. His first feeling of 
embarrasment is indicated bv the name which he attaches to 



A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 171 

it— the there-here, the it-me {ta-va). But the mental pro- 
cess cannot stop here. Having been now made to perceive 
that there is in the me something besides and other than the 
here, he is led to question himself as to what this additional 
something may be. Thus, at length, does the idea of the 
/come into distinct consciousness; the subject has become 
aware of his own subjectivity by meeting with the, for him, 
objectised subjectivity of another. Upon the attainment 
of the I, the thou follows of course. 

That this, or something much like this, is really the order 
in which these ideas successively take their places as parts 
of man's consciousness, may perhaps be thought to derive 
some confirmation from the known fact that young children, 
even after they have begun to speak, have not yet acquired 
the idea of the I, but speak of themselves in the third per- 
son, e.g. not " I will go," but " Kate will go," not " give it 
me," but " give it Kate."* The little girl who uses this 
language, has not yet fully learned to regard herself as a 
subject, but as an object only, as in fact we all frequently 
view ourselves, or rather as we always view ourselves when- 
ever the word me is made use of by us. f 

A comparison of the Indo-Gennanick languages with one 
another, places it beyond doubt that the vocal signs for the 
second personal pronoun thou, and the second numeral two, 
are but varied forms ol the same word. And, I think, no 
one can attentively consider the matter without remarking 

See " Philosophy of Consciousness," Blackwood's Ed. Mag. vol. xliik 
p. 788. 

t That me refers to the subject viewed objectively— viewed, I mean, as its 
own object— may be familiarly illustrated by the recollection that nobody ever, 
in answer to the question "Who is there?" replied with "It's I," until the 
rules of mere formal grammar had compelled him to do violence to his 
nature. On the contrary, one feels " here is me" to be as unpleasant as '< it's 
me" is natural and easy. The reason is that in the latter expression the 
here is objectized, and so made into a there. 



172 A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 

that the one, two arise altogether from the connection be- 
tween the person speaking and the person spoken to, a 
connection perfectly unique. Anybody will feel this, who, 
while addressing himself to another, will begin to count the 
people in the room. He will at once feel, I mean, the 
naturalness of commencing with himself, and proceeding 
next to the person with whom he is in direct communication, 
one, two, while all others present will collectively constitute 
the there or three. Then, out of this connection with the 
person with whom we are speaking, this feeling of " toward- 
liness," as, for want of a fitter word, I have termed it in the 
annexed chart, arise the notions of nextness, duality, and 
others variously therewith connected. In all which it will 
be observed, that neither in thought, nor, when we examine 
them, in the vocal elements, is there any introduction of the 
guttural or the notions thereto belonging. The guttural we 
first meet with in the he. Now it appears, on consideration, 
that although in the he the notions of objectivity and sub- 
jectivity are combined, the former is greatly predominant, 
so that it is no wonder that on the one hand an objective 
vocal element should be employed for the expression of this 
relation, while, on the other, the element selected is that of 
the near rather than of the there. Perhaps there may be 
a seeming inconsistency in saying that the element indicative 
of objective nearness has been selected, to denote the proxi- 
mity of the he to the i, a proximity the entire ground of 
which lies in the subjectivity attributed to an object by the 
thinker's imagination. But this is merely an early use of 
the metaphorical language inevitable in all speech relating 
to other than sensible things. 'Eyu) (or rather o-e, ta-va) is 
the first metaphor. 

I shall now, I hope, at least after reference to the annexed 
table, be thought to have fully made it out that ta-va and 



( P 472). 




A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 173 

Fa are utterly distinct, and belong to notions having no 
immediate connection with one another. Here, there, and 
near are all objective. / is, of course, purely subjective, 
and thou, in its strongest form, that of speaking to another 
person, and at the same time looking him in the face, or 
rather in the eyes, almost equally so ; while he, though not 
at present subjective, is subjective in posse, and precisely by 
the attribution of this potential subjectivity is distinguished 
from the other external objects, viz. the its, around us. Mr. 
Donaldson has confused the objective pronominal or posi- 
tional near, with the subjective personal pronoun thou. 
This he would hardly have done, had he noted that while 
in psychological order thou is clearly prior to he, and is ac- 
cordingly fitly termed the second personal pronoun; it is 
equally manifest, both from psychological considerations and 
from the succession of the organs with which they are 
severally uttered, that ta is prior to ka, the there to the near. 
So that the proper arrangement of the positionals is, (I) pa, 
&c, (2) ta, &c, (3) ka, &c. And the etymological con- 
nexion of the second personal pronoun with all its derivatives 
is entirely with the first and second of these positionals, while 
with the third it has nothing whatever to do. The occasion 
of Mr. Donaldson's oversight is probably to be found in his 
use of the term pronouns instead of pronominals (which he 
employs very rarely), or positionals, for the vocal represen- 
tatives of the primary notions of locality. It is most difficult 
to avoid confusion when old words are employed in new 
senses, especially in senses akin to those wherein we have 
long been familiar with them. T have only to add, that for 
these remarks, I hope I may be held sufficiently excused by 
the consideration that the greater the value of any work, the 
more is the need that its errors or oversights should be dis- 
covered and corrected. Whereupon, not without a hope 



174 A FIRST LESSON IN PSYCHOLOGY. 

that this little book, duly perused, may have been of use — 
I would gladly write, of some considerable use, to them, 
I now bid my readers very heartily farewell. 



THE END. 



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